“Vice-President Inonge Mutukwa-Wina ‘s call for improved Fiscal Transparency is Justifiable,” insists PFM-G Senior Economist Bright Chizonde

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1. Public Financial Management Consult
   Phone: +260976747893
   Email: pfmgconsult@gmail.com 8th Street, Chelston Green, Lusaka

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: Wednesday 20th May 2020

The call for improved Fiscal Transparency is Justifiable

 

By Bright Chizonde

THE call for improved fiscal transparency concerning the management of donations and other public funds meant for combating COVID-19 is justifiable. Zambia ranks among the least transparent countries in terms of public financial management and thus the public and other stakeholders are well within their right to demand for increased transparency.

PFM-G Consult therefore commends the decision taken by her Honor the Vice President, Madam Inonge Mutukwa-Wina MP, in instructing government agencies, including the Ministry of Health and Disaster Mitigation Management Unit (DMMU) to take audit and publish details concerning the donations made thus far.

Zambia will benefit from improved transparency through increased accountability and fiscal responsibility.

Fiscal transparency refers to the openness of government concerning public finances and includes deliberate actions taken by government to make quality and relevant information available to the public. Zambia scored as low as 30% on transparency in the 2019 Open Budget Survey (OBS), less than the global average of 45%, and lower than Namibia, Zimbabwe and Botswana.

The use of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) which consolidates government balances, should not become a hindrance to transparency regarding the management of public funds.

Even though monetary donations are deposited into the TSA and thereafter disbursed to line ministries and agencies for spending, there should still be a clear record of collections, allocations and utilization.

We therefore encourage the government to improve its fiscal transparency even beyond COVID-19 donations in order to gunner more support and solidarity for improved recourse mobilization.

Issued by:
Bright Chizonde
Senior Economist
PFM-G Consult

Editor’s Note:

PFM-G is a private research and capacity building institute specialized in public financial management.

We offer trainings in public policies around government budgeting fiscal responsibility, fiscal transparency, and key economic issues.

We also equip government agencies and department, NGOs and CSOs, with skills aimed at improving public financial management for accelerated economic growth and development.

For more information, email: pfmgconsult@gmail.com, or follow us on our Facebook page: PFMG Consult.

 

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