Training Program

Mid- to senior-level officials from finance ministries/departments, planning bodies, and line ministries. The course will be most useful to officials with some decision-making authority and who are responsible for writing and/or overseeing sections of state budget documents and budget communications.

Priority will be given to officials currently engaged in macro fiscal planning and forecasting, expenditure and revenue policy, budget formulation, debt management, and fiscal risk reporting. Participants should possess good English language-writing skills.

A number of Indian states have identified the need to make progress in the transparency of their budget documentation, and to strengthen citizen participation. For example, Odisha has made significant headway in the quality of its budget documentation, and Tamil Nadu  recently produced its first citizens budget. However, the general quality of budget transparency requires significant improvement, as suggested by the 2021 Open Budget Survey covering the central government.

Modern public financial management practices stress the importance of transparency, accountability, and credibility in budgeting to promote development objectives. The budget is both a policy tool and a critical entryway for citizen engagement. This one-week workshop will provide officials with the core principles needed to strengthen budget transparency and citizen participation, combining theory and practice.