2012年-世界发展银行全球_Gabon_Public_Expenditure_Review___Better_Management_of_Public_Finance_to_Achieve_Millennium_Development_Goals_65页_1mb

Gabon Public Expenditure Review Summary

Core Content

This report, titled "Public Expenditure Review: Better management of public finance to achieve Millennium Development Goals," was prepared by a World Bank team in 2012. It evaluates Gabon's public expenditure management and its alignment with the country's development goals, particularly focusing on the period 2005–2009 and the subsequent reforms aimed at improving fiscal efficiency and sustainability.

Main Points

Economic Situation

• Gabon remains heavily dependent on oil, which constitutes a significant portion of its revenue.
• Despite high per capita income due to oil revenues, Gabon ranks 106th out of 187 countries in the Human Development Index (HDI), indicating a need for improved social services and infrastructure.
• The country is classified as an upper-middle income nation with a GDP of approximately 8643 USD per capita in 2010.
• Oil production declined significantly over the past fifteen years, but oil revenue remained substantial.

Budget Implementation (2005–2009)

• Budget surpluses averaged 8.8% of GDP, corresponding to 46% of oil revenues.
• Surpluses were primarily used to reduce external debt and domestic arrears, with only a small portion allocated to future generations and the Central Bank.
• Public spending on general services (including sovereignty expenses) accounted for more than 6.4% of GDP on average, which is a significant portion of the budget.
• Social sectors (education and health) received a smaller share of the budget compared to other African and middle-income countries.
• Budget execution was often below the authorized levels, especially for priority programs like education, health, and infrastructure.

Key Findings

• Education expenditure was 15% of the State budget, representing 3.2% of GDP, below the sub-Saharan average of 4%.
• Health expenditure accounted for 5.6% of the State budget, or 1.4% of GDP, significantly lower than the regional average of 8.3%.
• Capital budgets for the 2006–2008 Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (GPRSP) were far below expectations, especially in agriculture, housing, and road construction.

Challenges in Implementation

• Low execution rates for GPRSP priority programs.
• Weaknesses in the public finance management system, including:
  • Lack of alignment with GPRSP priorities.
  • Absence of multi-year budgeting.
  • Inadequate project studies and cost estimates.
  • Late disbursement of funds.
  • Inefficient procurement and commitment planning.
  • Poor capacity of ministries to monitor and execute budgets.
  • Discrepancies between budget execution and actual service delivery.
  • Lengthy expenditure chains and poor documentation.

Key Recommendations

Budget Preparation and Follow-up within a Medium-Term Framework

• Finalize the "Gabon Emergent" strategic plan (PSGE) with stakeholder consultation.
• Align sector-specific MTEFs with the PSGE.
• Implement the Budget by Program Objectives (BOP) project team to prepare the 2014 Budget Law.
• Ensure ministries that have completed MTEFs submit them systematically to budgetary conferences.
• Present MTEFs as appendices to the Budget Law to improve transparency.
• Develop annual reports on the physical and financial implementation of MTEFs.
• Create a communication plan and training strategy for stakeholders on the new LOLFEB (Organic Law on Finance Laws and Budgetary Implementation).

Improving Budget Execution

• Increase the execution rates of social and productive sector budgets.
• Strengthen the capacity of sectoral ministries to plan and monitor public procurement.
• Introduce procurement and commitment plans earlier in the budget cycle.
• Improve the quality of supporting documents and reduce the 60-day payment period once the nomenclature of supporting documents is adopted.
• Enhance the efficiency of the public finance management system to ensure better use of resources and avoid sudden budget cuts once oil revenues decline.

Key Institutions and Acronyms

Conclusion

The report emphasizes the need for better public finance management to support the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. It outlines the importance of aligning budgeting with national strategies, improving execution rates, and strengthening institutional capacity to ensure efficient and transparent use of public resources. The introduction of the LOLFEB and the development of MTEFs are key steps in this reform process, aiming to move Gabon towards becoming an emerging economy.