Public Expenditure Tracking Surveys(PETS)

Zerubabel OjooManagement systems and Economic Consultants

Jan 25 2005

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What is (PETS)• Diagnostic or monitoring tool to understand

problems in budget execution delays/predictability of public funding Leakage / shortfalls in public funding discretion in allocation of resources

What PETS does?• Collect data from different levels of

government, including service delivery units• Rely on record reviews, but also head

teacher/health facility manager interviews• Vary design depending on perceived

problems, country, and sector

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Policy frameworkGovernment

programPRSP

Sector strategies

Budget allocation

OutturnTimely

disbursements in accordance

with established policies and

priorities

Outputs Impact Outcomes

The ideal situation in budgeting…

Social accountability

Which dimensions of SA do we apply as the budget is executed?

Who takes responsibility and bears the cost

Social accountability

Which dimensions of SA do we apply as the budget is executed?

Who takes responsibility and bears the cost

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Policy frameworkGovt. program

PRSPSector strategies

Budget allocation

OutturnTimely

disbursements in accordance with

established policies and

priorities

Outputs

Impact

Outcomes

PUBLIC EXPENDITURE TRACKING SURVEY (PETS)QUANTITATIVE SERVICE DELIVERY SURVEY (QSDS)

A more typical situation…

Lack of clarity about how resource allocation relates to policies and priorities

- budget not comprehensive- classification system

Political economy

Nontransparent process- Poor reporting on execution

- High level of aggregation- Discretion in allocation

Weak service delivery- Accountability

- Efficiency- Quality

Inherently difficult to assess- Household surveys

- Participatory approaches- Social Impact Assessment

Unclear policy framework

Weak management information systems- limited coverage- poor data quality

- late and scattered reporting

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Public spending benefits the rich more than the poor-Benefit incidence analysis of public spending for diagnosis

Money fails to reach frontline service providers-Captured by administrative layers or politicians-Public expenditure tracking surveys (PETS)

Poor quality services-Quantitative Service Delivery Survey (QSDS)

e.g., absenteeism,

The poor and services, and monitoring tools.

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The Key Social Accountability issues. Weak societal actors to play central role in SA in

terms of funding and organization. Incentive structure inclined to punishment. Problems

exist in enforcing punishment and sanctions in decentralized setting.

Rewards and political patronage. Rule following is the focus. Performance based SA is

new. Low level of institutionalization and methods in use

are not inscribed in the law Early external involvement with limited external

participation at the end of the process. Elitist involvement with the executive branch of

government.