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Public Financial Management Support

PUBLIC FINANCE FOR DEVELOPMENT

The development cooperation of the Ministry of Finance of the Slovak Republic (“MF SR”) in the field of public finance management builds on Slovakia's experience and knowledge derived from the public finance reform in 2003-2006, the preparations for the accession to the European Union, as well as further post-reform developments in public finance.

The most strategic initiative in this area is the MF SR and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Public Finance for Development project. It aims to contribute to effective public finance management and good governance in the partner countries, in particular by providing technical assistance and capacity development in the field of public finance management. 

The project was launched in 2009, and the transfer of know-how is currently taking place in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Northern Macedonia, Moldova and Serbia. Expertise is provided mainly in the following areas: budgetary process and public finance planning, transparency, public sector accounting and reporting, tax policy and tax collection, public debt management and treasury system, fiscal decentralisation.

Major cooperation achievements include:

  • In Moldova: introduction of the programme-based budgeting methodology in public sector - preparation of a pilot state budget expenditures spending review in cooperation with the International Monetary Fund; In Montenegro: support for public sector accounting and reporting reform in Montenegro, including preparation for the transition to accrual accounting in line with the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) - improvement of the efficiency and transparency of local government financing in Montenegro - gambling regulation and monitoring through information technology; In Northern Macedonia: support for the  fight against shadow economy in Northern Macedonia through improving international tax policy and local tax administration.

The MF SR also contributes to the development of public finance capacities in the region of South-Eastern Europe in cooperation with the Center of Excellence in Finance. The support is implemented via educational workshops and courses, but in recent years it has mainly taken the form of bilateral projects implemented right within the partner countries. An important project is the Certified Training Programme for Public Sector Accountants in Montenegro. Its results include improved qualifications of Montenegrin officials responsible for reporting the state's financial data and the methodological preparation of institutions in Montenegro for the independent certification programme implementation.

The Ministry of Finance has the ambition to be one of the international actors, which set global trends and create initiatives aimed at improving public finance and tax systems in the world. Accordingly, the MF SR also contributes to the international professional discourse on standard setting, research support, and innovative exchange of information in the public finance field.

Since 2019, the MF SR has been a member of the renowned PEFA (Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability) programme which aims to improve public finance management using a universal and standardised evaluation methodology, as well as to support research and capacity building in developing countries. Current programme challenges include designing solutions for the issues of post-pandemic recovery and climate change mitigation in the context of public finance management.

Since 2015, the MF SR has been an Addis Tax Initiative (ATI) member. It is a global initiative aimed at promoting the coherence of countries' tax policies with the objectives of sustainable development and the mobilisation of domestic resources, including building efficient tax systems and fighting tax evasion. In 2020, the MF SR renewed its commitment to contribute to the support for effective tax systems by joining the ATI 2025 Declaration. The membership of the MF SR in ATI Slovakia enables it to participate in international standards setting for the revenue side of budgets, which is the key to achieving the sustainable development goals.

An important complement to professional capacity building projects in the public finance field is the e-learning programme for the transfer of Slovak experience from public finance reforms. The programme was created by the MF SR and the World Bank and since 2018, it has been available free of charge on the World Bank's Open Learning Campus educational platform.