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.
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.
By Jason Lakin and Chloe Cho, International Budget Partnership— Jul 12, 2019
How optimistic should we be about government commitments to invest the funds necessary to realize the Sustainable Development Goals? According to recent data, we should be worried. Government underspending of budgets is a global challenge that may impede the realization of the SDGs.
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.”
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.
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.
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.
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.
By Gavin Hayman, Executive Director, Open Contracting Partnership— May 08, 2019
Information rights in the digital age, designing a data architecture that facilitates transparency, and digitizing government data to build user-centered services present both opportunities and challenges to the future of fiscal accountability.
By Esfandyar Batmanghelidj— May 01, 2019
The present circumstances in Iran make it a cautionary tale for domestic and international stakeholders seeking to improve financial regulations, fiscal governance, and government accountability in developing economies.