Now You See It, Now You Don’t...

Posted by Cem Dener and Saw Young (Sandy) Min [1]

The World Bank Study “Financial Management Information Systems and Open Budget Data: Do governments report on where the money goes?” (completed in June 2013) and new data set are now publicly available from the FMIS Community of Practice or the World Bank PRMPS Public Finance web site.

Within the last decade, FMIS has become a critical part of improving budget transparency. Disclosure of public finance information to citizens through FMIS platforms can improve transparency, if the published budget data are accurate, easily accessible and meaningful. Fiscal transparency can in turn improve trust in government, if the public interpret the motives for publishing the information positively, and an open budget data policy is sustained for long periods. Despite all efforts, designing robust FMIS solutions to capture all financial activities and publish open budget data, and measuring the effects of FMIS on budget transparency continue to be major challenges.

Keeping Reform in the DRC on Track

Posted by Oscar Melhado Orellana

In this third article on the blog in which IMF area department staff express their views on PFM reforms in “their” country, Fiscal Affairs Department technical assistance advisor, Jean Pierre Nguenang, speaks with IMF Resident Representative for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Oscar Melhado Orellana, about the importance of PFM technical assistance in keeping the IMF program on track.

What contribution are reforms of PFM, revenue administration and tax policy expected to make to improved economic and fiscal performance in the DRC?

The DRC is one of the poorest countries in the world in terms of nominal GDP, despite being considered one of the richest countries in terms of natural resources. It has more than 30 percent of the world’s diamond reserves and 70 percent of the world’s coltan. The DRC is also one of the lowest-ranked countries in the international Corruption Perception Index. The government is still struggling to bring order to the eastern part of the country where recurrent attacks on citizens are perpetrated by armed groups opposed to the regime.

A New PFM Reform Strategy for Cyprus

Posted by George Panteli[1]

The government of Cyprus recently launched a radical reform plan for modernizing the country’s public financial management (PFM) system. The reforms are crucial to the implementation of the economic and financial recovery program on which we are now engaged with the help of the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund. It will enable Cyprus to bring its budget process into line with best practice in the EU region, and enforce the fiscal rules and financial discipline that are necessary to comply with our Treaty obligations. At the same time, it will create an opportunity for line ministries to enjoy a new-found flexibility in managing their staff and other resources and to focus efforts on improving the quality of education, health and other public services that in many cases lag behind out counterparts in Europe. The strategy encompasses both traditional aspects of the budget system and emerging topics such as project evaluation processes, the management of fiscal risks including public-private partnerships (PPPs) and the future development of a sovereign wealth fund.  

The reform plan is challenging and a realistic timeline is required since the plan will take several years to implement. What are the plan’s main components?  

IMF Strengthens Fiscal Transparency Code

Previously published on IMF Survey online

Following an initial consultation early in 2013, the IMF has released a draft of its revised Fiscal Transparency Code for further public consultation. The revised Code will be the basis for a renewed push for greater fiscal transparency.

Information on public finances is sometimes reported by governments in ways that do not provide a full and reliable picture of their financial position, outlook, and risks. Greater fiscal transparency helps to ensure governments make informed economic decisions and allows legislatures and citizens to hold governments accountable for their use of public resources.

The revised Code aims to strengthen fiscal reporting standards to reflect the lessons of the recent economic crisis, identify and eliminate gaps in published fiscal information, and promote greater fiscal transparency in countries at all income levels. The changes are designed to ensure that policymakers, legislators, citizens, and markets have a more complete picture of the state of public finances.