Budget Transparency Forum Held in Tbilisi

The Eurasia Partnership Foundation (EPF) organized its second public forum on Budget Transparency and Civil Society Oversight of Public Spending in Georgia.

On December 16th, the event was held at the Holiday Inn Hotel and covered, Partnership for Budget Transparency: Civil Society Oversight (CSO) of Public Spending in Georgia, and was funded by the European Union and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida).

The forum aims to improve budget transparency and accountability in Georgia by fostering a dialogue between representatives of civil society and relevant public authorities.

The Public Finance Management (PFM) expert at Policy and Management Consulting Group (PMCG) discussed current developments in the public expenditure monitoring system in Georgia, particularly looking at Georgia’s standing in international assessments pertaining to budget transparency and providing an analysis of the 2015 budget implementation.

The Democratic Development Union of Georgia, presented the findings on budget application and reporting forms applicable to the entities established by self-governing municipalities, identifying main challenges and recommendations.

This and other budget transparency issues were also further discussed by the CSO Platform on Budget Transparency, initiated by the Eurasia Partnership Foundation and currently consists of 15 civil society organizations.

The forum included representatives of civil society and international organizations, the Government of Georgia and diplomatic missions.