Strengthen Budget Transparency and Participatory Budgeting (SN0014)

Description of the commitment

What public issue will the engagement address? Citizen participation is still weak in the development, implementation and monitoring of the budget at the local level, because the creation of consultation frameworks which serve as citizen participation bodies remains optional. The regular publication of budgetary documents and the institutionalization of the participatory budget would constitute avenues for improving the governance of public finances both at the national and territorial level.

What are the objectives of the engagement? This commitment aims, on the one hand, to improve transparency in the management of public finances, notably through public participation in the budgetary process, strengthening budgetary control; and on the other hand, the institutionalization of the participatory budget in local authorities. As such, it is:  revitalize the Multi-actor Budget Monitoring Framework (MBMF), created by Order No. 065-88 of April 27, 2016 of the Minister responsible for promoting good governance;  strengthen citizen awareness on accountability as well as on budget preparation, execution and monitoring mechanisms.

How would the engagement help to solve the public problem? The commitment will help increase budget transparency and strengthen citizen participation in the budget process at national and local levels.

Why is this commitment relevant to the values of the OGP? This commitment is relevant to the OGP because it aligns government actions with the fundamental values of the OGP, promoting more open, participatory, accountable and transparent governance. Budgetary transparency, accountability and the fight against corruption are key elements for strengthening citizen confidence and promoting tax compliance and more efficient management of public resources.

Additional information

The following documents are available:  IBP Open Budget Survey Results (2021)  Results of the Open Budget Survey (2019)  PEFA assessment following the 2016 methodology Annual circular evaluation of the 2023 UEMOA Directives,  IMF Public Investment Report 2018  Directive No. 01-2009 relating to the Code of Transparency in the Management of Public Finances 2012  Ministry website, Court of Auditors website and IBP website. It should be noted that Senegal joined the International Budget Transparency Initiative (GIFT) in 2020. Over the past decade, Senegal has made a lot of progress in terms of budget transparency (10 points in 2011 and 46 points in 2019, according to the Open Budget Index ranking). Thanks to its performances, Senegal was ranked second in Africa. Also, the recent adoption of Decree No. 2023-2161 of November 6, 2023 on the financial regime of local authorities offers the opportunity to improve transparency and citizen participation in said communities. However, the latest results of the Open Budget Survey (2023) show a decline (40/100) and underline the importance of strengthening budgetary control (30/100) and especially citizen participation (04 /100), with a view to improving Senegal's scores. Indeed, these scores reveal the lack of public debate on the budgetary process (programming, execution and control), in accordance with law 2012-22 of December 27, 2022 establishing the code of transparency in the management of public finances.

Important actions with a verifiable deliverable | Starting - Closing | Estimated budget | Responsible

1) Strengthen the technical capacities of civil society actors on the program budget | January 2024 - December 2025 | 10, 000,000 | DPB

2) Strengthen the capacities of local CSOs in budget preparation, execution, monitoring and control. | January 2024 - December 2025 | 50, 000,000 | DPB

3) Hold regular (at least four (4) per year) sessions of the multi-stakeholder budget monitoring and control framework (CMSB) | January 2024 - December 2025 | 50,000,000 | DPBG

4) Organiser des séances d’analyse du rapport trimestriel d’exécution du budget (CMSB) | January 2024 - December 2025 | 20, 000,000 | DPB

5) Ensure the regularity of the publication of budget documents (on time) | January 2024 - December 2025 | No charge | DPB

6) Organize citizen consultations around key budget documents after publication | January 2024 - December 2025 | 40, 000,000 | Steering commitee

7) Strengthen the capacities of CSOs on monitoring public investments | January 2024 - December 2025 | 20, 000,000 | DPB

8) Simplify the presentation of budget documents to facilitate understanding, using the example of the citizen budget | January 2024 - December 2025 | 20, 000,000 | DPB

9) Support twenty (20) local authorities in the implementation of the participatory budget | January 2024 - December 2025 | 60, 000, 000 | DCT

10)Advocacy for the revision of the local authorities code with a view to institutionalizing the participatory budget | January 2024 - December 2025 | 20, 000,000 | DCT