Résumé
This article describes general budget support as an instrument of development cooperation. Based on poverty reduction strategies, poorer developing countries are increasingly receiving general budget support which enables their governments to carry out their core responsibilities more effectively. Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and risks are discussed in a holistic approach. In view of aid effectiveness and efficiency, the author draws on an evaluation which was carried out in the context of the DAC/OECD in 2006, as well as on experience made in Switzerland's budget support engagement. He argues that the budget support methodology could also inspire the cooperation with non-governmental organisations.
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Aid Effectiveness: The Case of General Budget Support
1 Introduction
1.1 What is General Budget Support?The characteristics of general budget support (GBS) are that it is directly channelled through the partner government's systems and that it is not earmarked for specific projects or expenditure items.1 By making direct contributions to the state budgets of partner countries who give proof of their engagement for poverty reduction, general budget support enables these countries to carry out their core responsibilities efficiently and cost effectively - for example in the area of health or justice. The decisive elements are the government's budgetary priorities, its human resource management, its procurement rules and its accounting systems.Disbursements are made to the ministry of finance through the central bank and depend on the fulfilment of any reform objectives that have been agreed upon in the dialogue with the government. Budget support creates leverage beyond its volume because increased effectiveness and efficiency in the use of resources extends to the partner country's finances. Contrary to general budget support, sectoral budget support is earmarked for a selected area of the state's operations and therefore limited in its availability.General budget support is no blank cheque; indeed it comprises a package of measures based on the partner government's poverty reduction strategy. The package includes: (1) the financial contribution, (2) the accompanying performance agreement which lays down the prerequisites and conditions of the cooperation, (3) a continuous dialogue on the progress of reforms, (4) technical cooperation which, for example, strengthens the government's capacities through further education and training, and (5) the harmonisation of aid procedures among the donors with a simultaneous adjustment to the processes used in the partner country. This set of instruments allows for an adaptation to the specific circumstances in a partner country.1.2 Facts and FiguresBudget support is coordinated in groups of up to 19 donors. The members of the largest group in Mozambique are: Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, the European Commission (EC), Finland, France, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the African Development Bank and the World Bank. The "elephants" among the donors of budget support are: the World Bank, partially the African Development Bank, the United Kingdom, the EC, Norway and Sweden. The United States are consistently absent, Japan is participating in exceptional cases.A survey done by the Strategic Partnership with Africa (SPA) for 2005 found that the volume of budget support committed to 15 countries was 2.9 billion US$ out of which 2.4 billion US$ were disbursed during 2005. 43% of the disbursed amount is from the international financial institutions, 37%...Voir le contenu complet de ce document
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