Gaps remains in State budget disclosure policy, implementation: Research

The research results were announced at a conference held in Hanoi on August 29, collecting and analysing data from a number of localities across the country based on their Provincial Open Budget Index (POBI), Public Administration Performance Index (PAPI), and Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI).

The results will be used as a reference for the amendment of the Law on State Budget 2015.

Pham Van Long, a representative of the research team, said that in some localities like Dien Bien and Ba Ria-Vung Tau, improvements and good practices in budget disclosure are limited to the provincial level, mainly due to competitive pressure on the indicators.

The difference in budget disclosure practices between the two provinces is more evident at the district and commune levels and in the villages/hamlets/population groups/residential areas, he said.

Nguyen Duc Thanh, the founder of the Vietnam Centre for Economic and Strategic Studies (VESS) and head of the research team, pointed to a lack of a transparency culture in which publicity and transparency is a need for the people and obvious obligation for the government.

He recommended the strengthening of publicity and transparency of State budget at lower levels, initially the district one.

Nguyen Quang Thuong, Director of the Centre for Development and Integration (CDI), said that the People's Committees and Departments of Finance of provinces with good practice in budget publicity need to spread the spirit and culture of transparency to the district and commune levels to ensure that budget information is fully declared according to regulations.

Public policy analyst Do Thi Thanh Huyen from UNDP Vietnam said that narrowing the gap in State budget administration is necessary, as is ensuring the right of citizens to access information and participate in discussion, inspection and supervision of State budget revenues and expenditures in all levels. In addition, monitoring the implementation of publicity of State budget information and documents will help the local administrations better comply with the implementation of policies and laws related to budget disclosure and ensure a citizen's right to participate in the State budget cycle, the expert underscored.