Saturday, January 19, 2008

Talking about transparency vs real transpareny in budget process

An interesting report about transparency in government budgeting in Sri Lanka;



Related;
Promoting Fiscal Discipline - Fiscal Responsibility Laws
Budgetary institutions and expenditure outcomes : binding governments to fiscal performance

Sri Lanka Finance Ministry ( can somebody send a link to their Fiscal Responsibility Law)

Unleashing Sri Lanka's Potential-II
Economic Policy in Sri Lanka: Issues and Debates;
Economic policy’ has been a key topic of debate among economists, social scientists, policy makers, administrators, investors, donors and others interested in growth and development. Over the past two decades, it has become highly controversial and provocative due to the involvement of donor agencies in economic policy issues of developing economies. A detailed analysis of the small open economy of Sri Lanka presents an interesting case study as its policy experience covers both controlled and open economy policy regimes over a period of five decades. Here are 23 well-trained economists and social scientists who have put together an in-depth and timely analysis about the change of policy regimes and its impact on socio-economic development of Sri Lanka. It’s a compendium of articles in honor of Gamini Corea in recognition of his contribution to Sri Lankan economic policy making and international policy making.

The volume is edited by Saman Kelegama, Executive Director of the Institute of Policy Studies and Co-Editor of South Asia Economic Journal, best known for his contribution on policy analysis in Sri Lanka. An innovative aspect of this volume is that it consists of six distinct sections: i) development strategy and ideology, ii) macroeconomic policy, iii) agriculture, industry and technology development, iv) employment and labour, v) institutional and governance issues, and vi) social welfare. The editorintroduction to the volume with a summary of the milestones of Gamini Corea’s career and to each of the parts and chapters put the individual studies into context to provide a comprehensive account of theory, issues and policy.

As far as we are aware, there exists at least five major compendiums of studies dealing with evolution of post-independence economic policy of Sri Lanka. This volume however, is a welcome contribution as it presents a more careful and detailed analysis of economic policy in Sri Lanka using a structured format. Its time coverage and scope are much more encompassing than any other study presently available. The volume contains quite thorough and detailed analysis of policy issues which are of vital importance to the on going policy debate in Sri Lanka.

Chapters covered in Part I deal with growth of manufactured exports and terms of trade, the influence of development ideology in macroeconomic policy reform process, the lessons of national planning, understanding policy reforms (1960-2000) and the importance of the public sector and includes Chapters 1-5. Part II deals with aspects related to fiscal policy, public debt, and exchange rate while Part III encompasses Chapters 9 to 11 focusing on agricultural development, industrial policy, and technology development. Part IV is concerned with employment and labour paying special attention to labour productivity, youth unemployment and migration. Part V examines issues related to economic liberalization and institutional reform, competition policy, privatization and regulation, and banking sector reforms. Part VI consists of four studies on colonial lineages of the welfare state, overview of the health sector, public investment in education, and poverty alleviation.


Open Budget Index

Country Budget Laws

Sri Lanka: Report on the Observance of Standards and Codes - Fiscal Transparency Module--Update

The Magnitude and Distribution of Fuel Subsidies: Evidence from Bolivia, Ghana, Jordan, Mali, and Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka: Selected Issues

The Institute of Policy Studies (IPS)

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