Budget process and corruption:
5. How to reduce corruption in the budget process
5.0 Different actions in different areas
Drawing on the analysis of corruption risk and system weaknesses from these issue pages, the present section sets out actions and measures which could be undertaken to reduce the danger of corruption - by governments and by the various domestic and international agents. The advice is structured around the following themes:
CONTENT IN PART 5:
- 5.1 Legislation, judiciary,
and legislature
- 5.2 Systems, institutions, and
administration
- 5.3 Attitudes, culture, and citizen
oversight
- '5.4 What can donors do?
Most of the governments, donors, IFI's, regional and international organisations have plans and strategies for anti-corruption. Their anti-corruption strategies seem to move along the same lines. It is often difficult to differentiate anti-corruption measures from broader work to improve the public sector. This amalgamation of anti-corruption and improvement of public sector governance and management is clearly outlined in the World Bank's anti-corruption strategy which builds on five key elements:
- Increasing Political Accountability
- Strengthening Civil Society Participation
- Creating a Competitive Private Sector
- Institutional Restraints on Power
- Improving Public Sector Management
This does not mean that all measures to improve public sector management are also measures against budgetary corruption. Nevertheless, most concrete improvements in public expenditure management components tend to have a positive impact by reducing the opportunities for corruption. Although anti-corruption does not appear as a separate item, the issue of financial integrity underpins almost every one of its components.
Concrete measures against corruption and in favour of government transparency
and accountability must be specific and focused. This means that those
officials - national and international, part of the government or part
of a resident donor mission - who construct and implement such measures,
must have solid insight into the budget process, the key steps, and the
driving factors. They must, however, also be aware of - and as far as
possible understand - the political, cultural, and institutional underpinnings
of the budget process. Only then can one undertake risk assessments, improve
the development and implementation of action plans, and strengthen and
enhance dialogue between donors and partner governments.
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Public Financial
Management and Procurement |
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Budget process |
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Revenue administration |
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Fiscal decentralisation |
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Direct budget support |
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Public Expenditure Tracking |
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Procurement |
Query the U4 helpdesk about PFM |
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U4 welcomes any | CONTACT |
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Hannes Hechler
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| RECOMMENDED READING |
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“It is our money. Where is it gone?” is a short documentary, released by the International Budget Partnership, on an initiative, in Mombasa (Kenya) to involve communities directly in monitoring the Constituency Development Fund, a fund managed by Kenyan parliamentarians. Through social audits, communities monitored budgets and held their government accountable for managing the public’s money and meeting the needs of the poor.
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| RELATED U4 PUBLICATIONS |
This U4 Brief assesses how banks facilitate illicit capital flows from developing countries. The shortcomings of the existing regulatory frameworks are discussed, and recommendations are made for donor governments on what can be done to curb the flow of corrupt money out of the developing world. |
