Public Sector Governance and Accountability Series: Budgeting and ...

9
Budget Execution
daniel tommasi
Budget execution is the phase when resources are used to implement
policies incorporated in the budget. A well-formulated
budget can be poorly implemented, but a badly formulated budget
cannot be implemented well. Good budget preparation comes first.
Budget execution procedures must ensure compliance with the initial
programming, but they are not simply mechanisms for ensuring compliance.
Successful budget execution depends on numerous other
factors, such as the ability to deal with changes in the macroeconomic
environment, the implementation capacities of the agencies concerned,
and the problems met in program implementation. Hence,
efficient budget execution calls for (a) ensuring that the budget will be
implemented in conformity with the legislature’s authorizations,
(b) adapting the execution of the budget to changes in the economic
environment, (c) resolving problems met in program implementation,
(d) procuring goods and services and managing efficiently, and
(e) preventing any risk of abuse and corruption.
This chapter reviews the following issues:
Stages of the budget execution cycle
Basic compliance controls
Issues related to the management and monitoring of budget
execution
Conditions for efficiency in cash management
How to address the current weaknesses in the existing systems in
Africa.
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