PI-28. IN-YEAR BUDGET REPORTS

ABOUT THIS INDICATOR

This indicator assesses the comprehensiveness, accuracy, and timeliness of information on budget execution. In-year budget reports must be consistent with budget coverage and classifications to allow monitoring of budget performance and, if necessary, timely use of corrective measures. This indicator contains the following three dimensions and uses the M1 (WL) method for aggregating dimension scores:

  • Dimension 28.1. Coverage and comparability of reports
  • Dimension 28.2. Timing of in-year budget reports
  • Dimension 28.3. Accuracy of in-year budget reports

IMPACT ON BUDGETARY OUTCOMES

Information on budget execution that includes revenue and expenditure data is required to facilitate performance monitoring and, where necessary, to help identify action needed to maintain or adjust planned budget outturns. Regular reporting is part of an effective monitoring and control system to ensure that budgets are executed as intended, and that deviations from plans, if any, are highlighted for consideration by decision makers adjusting budget execution to better meet objectives and achieve desired outcomes.

INDICATOR MEASUREMENT GUIDANCE

28:1. This indicator focuses on the preparation of comprehensive budget execution reports for the government’s internal use, i.e., do they provide an overview of execution and support well-informed management decisions. Information made available in separate reports from budget entities would meet the requirements for this indicator only to the extent that such information is complete and can be consolidated to provide a full overview.

28:2. For the purpose of scoring of this indicator the same type of reports should be examined in every dimension of this indicator. Timing, accuracy, coverage, and comparability would thus be assessed for the same set of reports.

28:3. With regard to cross referencing this indicator with other indicators, note that PI-28 calls for information about commitments and payments. It does not demand information on arrears (PI-22) – information on arrears, in particular, requires the registration of unpaid invoices for which payment is due, a step covered neither by commitment information nor by payment records – or address the publication of in-year budget reports (PI-9).

Dimension 28.1. Coverage and comparability of reports

DIMENSION MEASUREMENT GUIDANCE

28.1:1. This dimension assesses the extent to which information is presented in in-year reports and in a form that is easily comparable to the original budget (i.e., with the same coverage, basis of accounting, and presentation). The division of responsibility between the MoF and line ministries in the preparation of the reports will depend on the type of accounting and payment system in operation (centralized, deconcentrated, or devolved). In each case the role of the MoF will vary between:

  • Centralized capture and processing of budgetary unit transactions along with production and distribution of various types of budgetary unit specific and aggregated/ consolidated reports;
  • Production and dissemination of budgetary unit specific and aggregated/consolidated reports based on budgetary unit capture and processing of transactions
  • Consolidation/aggregation of reports provided by budgetary units (and where applicable, from deconcentrated units) from their accounting records.

 

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