Final Report: Strategic Planning and Budgeting

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ASSESSMENT OF RESULTS
In a nutshell, the following impact on beneficiaries’ work has been expressed at interviews
Albania
The SPB provided opportunities for beneficiaries to meet with colleagues from other countries and exchange
ideas, policy advices and experiences.
The SPB activities addressing fiscal rules and fiscal councils have been very helpful, as these thematic areas
are highly prioritized in the region. Some solutions presented at the SPB learning events were subject of internal
discussion on fiscal rules’ regulation at the Ministry of Finance.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Knowledge and good practice shared at the SPB activities helps Bosnian experts to strengthen capacities in
the field of program budgeting.
Given the complexity of program budgeting, the SPB events on this topic gave officials from Bosnia and Herzegovina
a nice opportunity to get external reflections on the internal procedures in their institutions.
Croatia
The SPB gave officials an opportunity to network with colleagues from other beneficiary countries in the region,
and to share good practice that empowers future cooperation with colleagues in the region. The EU-funded
SPB activities were hence much appreciated; Croatian officials do not have many other opportunities to
attend trainings abroad.
The SPB helped beneficiaries to share knowledge and extend professional networks within South East Europe.
Kosovo
The SPB helps improve budget planning capacities of line ministries, and gives opportunities to learn about
best budgeting practices in the region.
CEF trainings are of top quality and comprehensive. They help to improve capacities of public finance officials
in Kosovo.
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
The SPB strengthens capacities at line ministries in improving budget submissions and inputs to strategic
macrofiscal documents.
The SPB gives experts from line ministries and other relevant budget users a frame of reference to better understand
how learning works, and to design and deliver training and learning activities.
The SPB learning events were excellent and overall the CEF program is supporting the Ministry of Finance’s
capacity building efforts. At the SPB events, Macedonian participants learned, for example, about EC guidelines
and requirements on fiscal reporting. Participants from the Ministry of Finance benefited from regional
exchange of experience and approaches.
Montenegro
Through promoting exchange of good practice and experience with colleagues and experts from South East
Europe and elsewhere, the SPB strengthened capacities in the field of structural reforms and the implementation
of a medium-term budgeting framework.
The comparative approach on fiscal institutions at the related SPB seminar helped us reflect on the different
models and solutions while reforming our related legislations, for example, on Budget Responsibility. The
regional experiences shared at the SPB activity have been disseminated among the Ministry of Finance’s
working group on such new legislation.
Serbia
The SPB enabled exchange of practice with colleagues from the region and better understanding of opportunities
to promote domestic practice, e.g. with respect to applying computer software for macroeconomic
forecasting.
The SPB learning activities increased knowledge of budget formulation, fiscal institutions and risk management.
Generally, Serbian officials share knowledge and lecture materials with their colleagues at their return to office.
Turkey
The SPB strengthened knowledge of capital budget formulation and execution and their processes as essential
elements for ensuring a country’s social and economic development and its financial stability, and helped
exchange good practice in cost-benefit analysis.