Improving Fiscal Transparency in Francophone Africa

    

Posted by Bruno Imbert,^[1] Serge Ramangalahy,^[2] Claire Schouten^[3] and Alex Kreko.^[4]

Fiscal transparency is always important as an aid to fiscal policy and good budgeting but has becomes critical during the COVID-19 pandemic because of high levels of public spending and debt, to avoid misuse of scarce public funds, and to enhance accountability.

Améliorer la transparence budgétaire en Afrique francophone

     
Préparé par Bruno Imbert,^[1] Serge Ramangalahy,^[2] Claire Schouten^[3] et Alex Kreko.^[4]

La transparence budgétaire est importante pour renforcer la politique budgétaire, mais le contexte de la pandémie de COVID-19 l’a rendue cruciale en raison des niveaux élevés de dépenses et de dette publiques, afin d’éviter l'utilisation abusive des fonds publics et pour renforcer la responsabilisation des décideurs.

Public Financial Management in the Post-COVID World

Posted by Srinivas Gurazada^[1]

The Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) framework has been a preferred methodology for assessing progress on PFM reforms globally. Since I became the Head of PEFA Secretariat a few months ago, I have been reflecting on the need to build on its unique strengths and prepare a PFM agenda in the post COVID-19 world.

Digital Media, Transparency and the War Against Corruption

Posted by David Fellows and John Leonardo^[1]

Corruption is highly damaging to economic and social life through misappropriation of public funds, restriction of open market activity, favouritism towards families of those in power, and the many detrimental effects of rent seeking. In this piece we review evidence for the power of transparency to reduce corruption and improve economic performance. We then consider the increasing relevance of digital media, particularly social media, to the transparency agenda and how its application can be encouraged.

Top 10 PFM Blog Posts of 2020

Posted by Richard Allen, Teresa Curristine, and Laura Torrent^[1]

2020 has been an exceptional year in many ways, not least for the PFM blog. There was a 45% increase in the number of blog articles posted in 2020, up from 76 the previous year to 110 in 2020. A little over half of the articles were on COVID-related themes. More than 220 authors contributed to these articles, of which 107 (48%) were from organizations outside the IMF, up from the 40% in 2019.

Two New IMF How-to-Notes on Cash Management

By Emre Balibek, Yasemin Hurcan and Sandeep Saxena^[1]

Managing cash balances is central to the government’s overall approach to cash management. Cash managers seek to maintain an optimal balance in the treasury single account (TSA) to ensure there is adequate liquidity to meet the government’s financial obliga­tions as they fall due. An adequate cash balance provides a cushion against cash flow volatility, especially in developing countries where short-term financing options and market access are limited. Liquidity, however, comes at a cost. Gov­ernments can reduce the cost of maintaining liquidity by proactively managing their cash balance and prudently investing any excess liquidity.

Improving Public Asset Management in South East Europe

Posted by Gorana Roje, Jasmina Popović and Suzanne Flynn^[1]

A recent on-line course hosted by the Center of Excellence in Finance (CEF) in Ljubljana concluded that a lot remains to be done to effectively manage the region’s public sector assets. The course looked at good practice internationally and current practices in South East Europe, Armenia, Georgia and Ukraine.

New IMF Infrastructure Governance Portal

Posted by Khaled Eltokhy, Chishiro Matsumoto, Nathalie Carcenac^[1]

The IMF’s Fiscal Affairs Department has launched a new portal dedicated to infrastructure governance. (https://infrastructuregovern.imf.org).

Harnessing Accountability Through External Public Audits

Posted by Vivek Ramkumar and Claire Schouten^[1]

So many lives have been upended by the overwhelming health and economic impacts of COVID-19. The good news is that governments have made major spending commitments to shore up their battered economies and to provide direct relief to their populations. The IMF estimates that countries have already announced nearly $12 trillion in emergency spending measures.

Building Macro-Fiscal Policies and Capabilities in Saudi Arabia to Support National Transformation

Posted by Saad Alshahrani, Emre Balibek, and Yasser Sobhi^[1]

Saudi Arabia has embarked on a major program of national economic transformation. The Kingdom’s Vision 2030, its National Transformation Program 2020, and its Fiscal Balance Program, set out an agenda for reform whose objectives include economic diversification, improving competitiveness and the business environment, increasing foreign direct investment and private sector participation in the economy, and growing the non-oil economy. To support these objectives, the agenda aims at ensuring that the public finances are managed efficiently, effectively, and sustainably, while adhering to high standards of transparency and accountability with a strong emphasis on performance and results.