The growth of budget work: 

On the first day of the Conference Isaac Shapiro of the International Budget Project gave a presentation for those new to the group or the work detailing the recent growth in the area of budget analysis, and some of the characteristics of the work. 

(Click here to see the original PowerPoint Presentation)

Applied budget analysis, aimed at a wide variety of audiences, policy-oriented and practical, is a relatively new activity for civil society groups.  This type of work is growing fast, attracting a lot of interest from both civil society and donors.  This is clear from the number of countries and organizations represented at this Conference compared to three years ago in Cape Town.  In the month of September the IBP made new contacts with groups from eight countries. 

There are several reasons for the growing interest in applied budget analysis, including:

• an international movement towards more open democratic societies has enabled active debate within societies and opened the door to budget advocacy work as part of consolidating democracy;
• a global trend towards devolution and budget reform has made this an opportune moment for input into the systems by which decisions are made and resources allocated for the population;
• an ongoing concern in civil society worldwide that globalization and economic growth is leaving the poor behind.  Decisions made around the budget for allocations of resources are central to this;
• a growing convergence of interest with the private sector, as they too want more transparent, open government before they will invest, gives our arguments more strength;
• a growing niche for us to fill, with active involvement in the budget debates being limited due to lack of capacity in legislatures and activists and the theoretical focus of many academic institutions.  Groups like ours can come in to fill the niche, write about the budget in a way that a broad audience can understand, support the legislature to represent their people well. 

Characteristics of groups:
Groups doing budget work have varied experience and capacity and are working at all levels, from the national and international to state and municipal.  They fall into three main areas:

• Researchers adding an activist component;
• Activists bringing in a research component, Grassroots organizations;
• Policy institutes focusing on applied policy work.

Interest for the findings and recommendations of the work comes from other members of civil society, including the broad population, media and researchers, and also from the different branches of government.

Challenges and lessons from applied budget analysis work:
When Ford Foundation funded groups working on the budget came together in 1997 to talk about challenges and lessons learnt, they discovered similar experiences.  Shared concerns included the lack of reliable information and the closed nature of budget processes.  They shared lessons on developing credibility to different audiences and acquiring expertise on the issues and techniques.

Shared functions included training on budget issues, sensitizing the electorate and media, and producing training materials such as budget guides.  Budget analyses cover the overall budget, specific sectors and the impact on poverty overall and within specific population groups such as women and children.  Analysis was also applied to the systems and processes by which the budget is produced. 

The International Budget Project (IBP):
In reaction to the fact that so many groups shared challenges, The IBP was formed within the US based Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, to act as a forum for sharing of experiences and concerns.  The CBPP has previous experience with applied budget work and buiding a network of groups within the USA.  

The IBP currently runs with three full time and four part time staff.  The project works primarily with researchers and NGOs in developing countries or new democracies to make budget systems more responsive to the needs of society and, accordingly, to make these systems more transparent and accountable to the public. It receives the majority of funding from the Ford Foundation and is not funded by government.  The network is informal and open to everyone and has a regional base in Africa with the Africa Budget Project based in IDASA, South Africa.

• pulling together information on budgets, and budget advocacy methodologies and experiences from throughout the world to form a resource base;
• undertaking joint research, for example the transparency framework elaborated with IDASA;
• facilitating communication and sharing of information throughout groups, through an email list-serve, newsletter and these conferences; 
• providing training and technical assistance, through workshops, and manuals such as the guide to budget work;
• building networks – across and within countries, and at regional level.

The impact of budget analysis:
A recent IBP study on the impact of the work of the various groups involved in applied budget analysis shows that:

• groups and networks form rapidly;
• budget literacy is improved;
• budgetary outcomes are improved;
• a constructive role is forged in a variety of governmental contexts

The effectiveness of the work is dependent on a variety of factors: that the analysis be timely, accurate and based in fact to ensure credibility and that findings be presented in accessible formats tailored to the audience's needs.  Success depends on initiative, groups must be willing to try new things and follow up on ideas, and be proactive in distributing the findings of analysis and research.