The Open Budget Survey Michael Castro Program Officer Open Budget Initiative

What is the Open Budget Survey? A comprehensive assessment that evaluates: 1.public access to timely & comprehensive budget information throughout the budget process 2.opportunities to participate in the budget process 3.strength of oversight: legislatures & external auditors Based on guidelines developed by the IMF, OECD, INTOSAI, and the IBP Survey covers 94 countries (13 countries in East Asia & the Pacific); 2008 Survey - 85 countries; 2006 Survey - 59 countries.

Rigorous Survey Methodology Data quality assured through five-step process: 1.Survey completed by nonpartisan expert country researcher 2.Peer reviews provided by two independent, anonymous, expert reviewers per country 3.IBP checks internal consistency and accuracy against publicly available data 4.Government review (optional) 5.IBP referees differences in answers between researchers and reviewers

Calculating the Open Budget Index The Open Budget Index is the average of 95 questions that focus exclusively public availability and comprehensiveness of 8 key budget documents. Countries are categorized based on their score out of 100: extensive (81-100); significant (61- 80); some (41-60); minimal (21-40); scant (0- 20).

How is the OBI used around the world? MOFs are using OBI as an internal performance indicator on budget transparency: Russia. World Bank included the OBS 2010 recommendations for São Tomé Príncipe in a list of “prior actions” that the government was required to complete to be eligible for assistance. United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (UKaid) recently developed its new strategy for providing direct budget support to countries, which draws extensively on the Open Budget Survey recommendations. US and EC also use the OBI. Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) uses OBI to determine eligibility for future compacts. Interim assessment in Honduras to determine eligibility for a second compact. Inter-American Development Bank uses OBI as a performance indicator in El Salvador and wants to elevate the score by OBS

Why do governments want to achieve a high OBI score? OBI is a globally recognized indicator on budget transparency. Budget transparency is an integral component of good public financial management. The Global Initiative for Fiscal Transparency (GIFT) is a multi-stakeholder action network working to advance and institutionalize global norms and significant, continuous improvements on fiscal transparency, participation, and accountability in countries around the world. Lead stewards: Brazilian Ministry of Planning, Budget and Management, Department of Budget & Management of the Philippines, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and International Budget Partnership. Working groups focus on: –Advancing global norms on fiscal transparency; –Incentives working group; –Technical Assistance & Capacity Building; –Harnessing New Technologies

How does Kazakhstan compare to the region?

Availability of Key Budget Documents Document Publication Status as of 2011 Publication Status as per OBI 2010 (on 15 September 2009) Pre-Budget StatementNot Produced Executive’s Budget ProposalPublished Enacted BudgetPublished Citizens BudgetPublishedNot Produced In-Year ReportsPublished Mid-Year ReviewNot Produced Year-End ReportPublished Audit ReportPublished

Recommendations Produce and publish the Pre-Budget Statement and Mid-Year Review; Provide spaces for the public to provide inputs in the: –budget formulation; –budget approval; –budget execution; and –auditing process

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