Open Budgets Blog

Transparency and corruption are not always what they appear to be

By Albert van Zyl and Dustin Kramer— Aug 12, 2019

When communities can identify which specific officials are responsible for services in their area and what exactly they are supposed to be delivering – the effect is electric. It gives the issue a name, a face, and a set of responsibilities.

Save Lamu! Drawing lessons on public participation from other sectors

By Jason Lakin, International Budget Partnership— Jul 15, 2019

Interest in public participation in the budget process is increasing, and the sector could learn a lot from practices in other sectors, such as the environment. As IBP’s Jason Lakin points out, we too often stay in our silos instead of looking to other fields for lessons learned about how to increase citizen engagement.

How Participatory Reforms Can Enable Voice But Fall Short of Transformation

By Joy Aceron, Government Watch Philippines— Jul 09, 2019

Bottom-up budgeting (BuB) can increase civil society participation in government. However, as this analysis of the Philippine experience shows, BuB does not automatically lead to increased government responsiveness. In this case, it provided civil society with a “voice” but without “teeth.”

Participatory Budgeting Processes: Beyond Box Ticking

By Brendan Halloran and Samir Khan, International Budget Partnership— Jul 08, 2019

The negative effects of power do not go away just because a budget process invites civil society participation. In this blog post, two IBP experts recommend three specific actions that can ensure meaningful results are actually achieved for marginalized communities and groups.

Tax to finance the SDGs, but not to undermine them

By Wilson Prichard, ICTD; Nora Lustig, CEQ; Sanjeev Gupta, CGD; Warren Krafchik, IBP; Ian Gary, Oxfam; and Brahima Coulibaly, Brookings— Jul 01, 2019

Stakeholders are gathering this week in Berlin to chart the future of the Addis Tax Initiative, whose overarching goal is to increase tax revenues to help finance the Sustainable Development Goals. This blog written by experts from civil society highlights the need to focus on equity and outlines priority areas for reform so as not to undermine the SDGs.

Fiscal Futures: Are National Oil Companies Champions or Obstacles for Energy Transition?

By Patrick Heller, Advisor, Natural Resource Governance Institute and David Manley, Senior Economic Analyst, Natural Resource Governance Institute— May 22, 2019

Whether national oil companies (NOCs) are planning on investing national wealth in the oil sector, or experimenting with renewable energy projects, stronger rules and oversight on how these companies spend public money is essential.

Fiscal Futures: Bolsonaro is Leading Brazil to the Abyss

By Nathalie Beghin, Head of Policy, Inesc and Carmela Zigoni, Policy Advisor, Inesc— May 15, 2019

Democratic backsliding and rising poverty and inequality in Brazil have put gains made in fiscal transparency and accountability under severe threat. To bring Brazil back to its path towards more justice and equitable development, civil society must work together to rebuild the idea of democracy that has been eroded in recent times.