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Education Sector Corruption in Ethiopia 85
of allocation that can be made across the different sectors. Woredas do
audit expenditures at the kebele (neighborhood, or ward) level, and cases
have been reported where this has led to money being returned by
kebele-level officials if malpractice is identified.
Corruption in budget planning, from the local levels up to the regional and
central levels—risk: low. Planning processes necessarily rely on the upward
flow of reliable data. As such, they can be corruptly influenced by falsification
or fraud in the provision of this data. In Ethiopia, such risks could
potentially occur through the falsification of the numbers or factors used
to calculate the formula for budget allocations. Though concerns have
been expressed about such overreporting of demographic and poverty
data (PBS JRIS 2008)—and indeed about the accuracy of the underlying
census—more detailed consideration of this risk is beyond the scope of
this study. However, reviews undertaken in support of the PBS II project
preparation provide some assurances that the budget and fiscal transfer
system to the regions appears to be relatively sound.
At the woreda level, there are a number of areas of risk in the planning
and budgeting of the multifund system, and although procedures are
clear, controls are not. Such areas of risk include (a) inflating of numbers
to receive more funding, and (b) manipulation of off-budget funds by
donors and NGOs.
Corruption in sector budget management at the local level—risk: medium.
At the local level, there is a theoretical risk of corruption resulting in
budget distortions, made possible by the relatively low capacity of formal
monitoring systems (table 3.4). Survey responses received during
Table 3.4
Summary of Corruption Risks in Planning and Budgeting
Form of corruption
Distortions in decision making by politicians
Corruption in budget planning, from the center down
to the regional and local levels
Bribery to influence allocation of resources at each
of the three levels
Corruption in budget planning, from the local levels up
to the regional and central levels
Corruption in sector budget management at the local level
Source: Author.
Perceived corruption risk
Low Medium High
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o
o
o
o