Supporting Ministry of Finance to Design Civic Participation Mechanisms

The Ministry of Finance decided is developing civic engagement mechanisms aiming to create a channel for citizens to be involved in the decision-making process of public budgeting. The main rationale behind this is that the participatory principle in public budgeting will encourage Georgian citizens to outline their priorities and allocate public recourses more efficiently. In addition, public budgeting will become more transparent and citizens’ trust in government will be increased.

With this in mind, PMCG, under the USAID Good Governance Initiative program, has provided support to the Ministry of Finance in designing civic participation mechanisms.

PMCG reviewed the Citizen’s Budget Guide developed by the Ministry of Finance of Georgia in previous years, studied international experiences and recommendations of international organizations regarding the Citizen’s Budget Guide, and drafted a revised structure to the Ministry.

PMCG also reviewed the “Plan Your Budget” web module of the Ministry of Finance and gave recommendations for its modification based on international experience to the GGI.

In addition, PMCG supported the Ministry of Finance to identify cultural and institutional barriers in the way of engaging citizens in the budget process.