Transactions at Hanoi State Treasury (Photo: VNA)
HCM City (VNA) – The International Budget Partnership (IBP)’s survey on the Open Budget Index 2015 (OBI 2015) revealed that Vietnam has seen significant changes in publicising the country’s coffers with five out of eight key budget documents unveiled, heard a conference held in Ho Chi Minh City on March 28.
Vietnam’s 2015 score was 18 out of 100 on the OBI which measures budget popularisation, public participation and budget oversight, according to IBP’s Open Budget Survey. Although the score was lower than the global average of 45, the country still recorded improvements in its transparency compared to 2012.
Ngo Minh Huong, director of the Centre for Development and Integration (CDI) which joined the IBP in conducting survey in Vietnam, said that Vietnam is giving a push to increase its OBI ranking to enhance faith from foreign partners and investors through adjusting fiscal policies and open budget mechanisms in accordance with OBI standards.
Meanwhile, Joel Friedman, senior researcher from IBP, attributed the low score to Vietnam’s failure in making budget proposals and mid-year review available to the public.
At the conference, experts said that as Vietnam has satisfied the criteria on budget oversight and public participation, the country’s OBI is likely to reach 60 out of 100 after the revised Law on State Budget takes effect in the 2017 fiscal year.
The International Budget Partnership’s Open Budget Survey (OBS) is the world’s only independent, comparable measure of budget transparency, participation and oversight.
The 2015 OBS evaluates 102 countries from around the world and measures three aspects of how governments are managing public finances for its OBI rankings.-VNA
