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

Distribution of Responsibilities
Budget Execution 289
Budget execution covers both activities related to the implementation of
policies and tasks related to the administration of the budget. Both the
central agencies (the ministry of finance, the ministry of planning in a dualbudgeting
system, and the prime minister’s office) and the spending agencies
are involved in these tasks. The distribution of responsibilities in budget
management should be organized according to the agencies’ respective areas
of responsibility and accountability.
The responsibilities of the ministry of finance and line ministries
The ministry of finance should have the following responsibilities:
Concerning the control of budget execution, administering the system of
release of funds (warrants, budget implementation plan, and the like);
preparing the in-year financial plan; monitoring expenditure flow; preparing
in-year budget revisions; managing the central payment system (if any)
or supervising government bank accounts; administering the central payroll
system (if any); and preparing accounts and financial reports
Concerning policy implementation, reviewing progress independently or
jointly with spending agencies, identifying policy revisions as appropriate,
and proposing to the council of ministers reallocations of resources,
within the framework authorized by the legislative body.
The spending units should have the following responsibilities:
Concerning budget administration, allocating funds among their subordinate
units, making commitments, purchasing and procuring goods
and services, verifying the goods and services acquired, preparing requests
for payment (and making payments if the payment system is not centralized),
preparing progress reports, monitoring performance indicators,
and keeping accounts and financial records
Concerning policy implementation, periodically reviewing the implementation
of the relevant program, identifying problems and implementing
appropriate solutions, and reallocating resources among sector activities
within the policy framework of the budget.
When several departments in the ministry of finance and other central
agencies are involved in the supervision of budget execution, close coordination
of their activities is required, and their respective functions should be
clearly delineated. In particular, in many countries, coordination between