In the allocation of scarce public resources, good budgeting is an art and a skill. It is a core function of government, and as such, it is fundamentally a political process with many competing objectives. But from a technical perspective, how do we know if a country’s budget system is actually any good?
Andrew Laing, ISE’s Public Economics Practice Manager, analyzes the key components of performance and policy-based budgeting and how practitioners can test budget systems to spot the often fine lines between best practice and poor performance. Read additional analysis from the author on performance and policy-based budgeting in the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF’s) Public Financial Management blog here.