This, he said, is paramount for a nation’s economic development.
At a forum organised by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs in collaboration with IMF, he said of the initiative: “It is meant to strengthen government systems and improve our budget system to produce the budget framework paper which will advise the Cabinet on the medium-term macro-fiscal targets and expenditure ceilings. The IMF and European Union take active role in the overall public financial management reforms .This is in line with international best practices and a significant milestone on our entire public finance management (PFM) reform process. Governments are accountable to their citizens for what they do and how they do it. Accountability and good governance means, in part, that the policies and plans that a government develops should reflect the priorities and needs of the people. It also means that the government should provide an account of what it has done to implement those policies and plans together with the results of its efforts.
“It is behind these efforts that government seeks to introduce the programme-based budgeting. This year, ministries are piloted with the aim to set the benchmark for a ‘big bank’ in 2016. We are cognisant of the enormous task ahead but with our dynamic team, we are confident of excellent results. PFM reforms is related to the review of laws, regulations and creation of the budget system that ensures effectiveness and efficiency of public resources. Programme-based budgeting seeks to provide accurate budgetary information”.
He said that in responding to the challenges, MoFEA will continue to engage with its development partners and relevant stakeholders as a platform to discuss the findings and constructively structure the documents that seek to provide valuable information to the lawmakers and the ordinary citizen.
“This effort is fully aware of the ever changing socio-economic landscape and that the needs of our people are equally dynamic. Therefore, government has to adapt accordingly and respond to this paradigm shifts. Government has long recognised that citizens are the backbone that will facilitate the actualisation of these needs. This is the background and context that drives MoFEA’s strategic intent of accelerating development gains in service delivery. We have no choice but to achieve the mission’s critical success by maximising the value for money in government investments” he added.
The IMF representative in The Gambia, Gaston Mbeweze, said government should maximise outputs and that was why they decided to move towards programmed based-budgeting.
“The private sector’s main aim is to maximise profits. We work with various line ministries. They act very smart in implementing their budgets. This approach focuses on how much money you spend. The government should focus on input rather than output. The main challenge is the increase in expenditure, fiscal discipline and ensuring financing being allocated.”
]]>
