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Article
Publication date: 7 August 2018

Mitsuaki Furukawa and Junichiro Takahata

The purpose of this paper is to analyze late disbursements for service delivery by focusing on donors’ General Budget Support disbursement to Tanzania and on the intergovernmental…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze late disbursements for service delivery by focusing on donors’ General Budget Support disbursement to Tanzania and on the intergovernmental money flows in Tanzania.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors examined empirical analysis using statistics of intergovernmental transfers in Tanzania.

Findings

This paper shows that such center-local transfers are significantly correlated with the timing of local government expenditures in general and health expenditures in particular. It also shows that development expenditures are more affected than recurrent expenditures by delays in the transfer.

Practical implications

In order to improve service delivery on the ground, the transfers from donors to the central government and from the central government to local governments need to be timely.

Originality/value

The authors examined empirical analysis using statistics of intergovernmental transfers in Tanzania so as to see whether timing of transfers matters or not, which has not been considered thus far.

Details

African Journal of Economic and Management Studies, vol. 9 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-0705

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 1996

Subramaniam Ramakrishnan

The survey of Sub-Saharan countries shows that after nearly two decades of stagnation, growth is reviving and is likely to receive additional momentum with the pursuit and…

260

Abstract

The survey of Sub-Saharan countries shows that after nearly two decades of stagnation, growth is reviving and is likely to receive additional momentum with the pursuit and judicious implementation of further fiscal adjustment efforts. The impact of economic stagnation on the financial management systems is evident in that they continue to be under severe strain despite a series of efforts aimed at their improvement. Lack of accountability and chronically ineffective control of expenditures are two of the major problem areas that need to be addressed. Among other areas that need to be addressed on a priority basis are the revamping of budgetary processes, including the development of a macroeconomic framework and forging more enduring links between planning and budgeting and improved management of foreign aid.

Details

Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management, vol. 10 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1096-3367

Article
Publication date: 12 June 2017

Mitsuaki Furukawa and Junichiro Takahata

The purpose of this paper is to verify whether general budget support is a favorable aid modality under SDGs in developing countries.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to verify whether general budget support is a favorable aid modality under SDGs in developing countries.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors use panel data on government revenue, expenditure, and social indicators for the ten-year period from 1997 to 2006 to reflect the result for sustainable development goals (SDGs). The authors focus on the health sector as a representative social sector.

Findings

The results show that GBS in fact increases the budget allocation for the health sector more than tax revenue does. However, the effect of government health expenditure on health indicators is not necessarily improved by the introduction of GBS, which indicates that the introduction of GBS alone has limited impact.

Social implications

The paper suggests that the complementarity between GBS and projects/programs focusing on human and institutional capacity development should be seriously considered. These results shall be considered even under SDGs.

Originality/value

This paper attempts to assess the effect of GBS in developing countries by using panel data on government revenue, expenditure, and social indicators for the ten-year period from 1997 to 2006 to reflect the result for SDGs.

Details

African Journal of Economic and Management Studies, vol. 8 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-0705

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 1990

Murray S. Martin

For many years, academic librarians worked in a fiscal environment of rapidly increasing budgets. Management of growth was the major problem. Today, though, most academic…

Abstract

For many years, academic librarians worked in a fiscal environment of rapidly increasing budgets. Management of growth was the major problem. Today, though, most academic librarians face “steady‐state”—or stagnant—budgets. This situation, more pronounced in recent years, has been with us for more than a decade, a fact most librarians and university administrators have been slow to recognize. These budgets require new fiscal management techniques whose key words are cost containment, substitution, choice, and priorities.

Details

The Bottom Line, vol. 3 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0888-045X

Article
Publication date: 7 April 2015

Ivica Petrikova

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to existing literature by examining whether development aid has any measurable impact on food security, whether the impact is…

1369

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to existing literature by examining whether development aid has any measurable impact on food security, whether the impact is conditioned on the quality of governance and whether it differs based on the type of aid provided.

Design/methodology/approach

Panel-data analysis of 85 developing countries between 1994 and 2011, using generalized method of moments and two-stage least squares estimators.

Findings

The paper finds that aid in general has a small positive impact on food security; that multilateral aid, grants and social and economic aid have a positive effect on food security in their own right, and that bilateral aid, loans and agricultural aid are more conditioned on the quality of governance that other aid.

Research limitations/implications

The main limitations rest with the imperfect nature of cross-country data on food security and governance, which I have tried to overcome through a series of robustness tests.

Practical implications

The findings suggest that aid, despite its many deficiencies, can play a positive role in strengthening food security. Furthermore, they indicate that concessional loans, bilateral aid and agricultural aid are likely to foster food security only in countries with better governance.

Originality/value

The paper constitutes a novel contribution to existing literature because it is one of the first to use cross-country data to explore the impact of aid on food security and because it utilizes a relatively complex aid categorization, which allows its conclusions to be more nuanced.

Details

International Journal of Development Issues, vol. 14 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1446-8956

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 November 2016

Andrew Goddard and Tausi Ally Mkasiwa

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the budgeting practices in the Tanzanian Central Government. New budgeting reforms were introduced following exhortations from the…

1337

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the budgeting practices in the Tanzanian Central Government. New budgeting reforms were introduced following exhortations from the bodies such as the UN, the World Bank and the IMF and reflect the new public management (NPM).

Design/methodology/approach

A grounded theory methodology was used. This methodology is inductive, allowing phenomena to emerge from the participants rather than from prior theory. This ensures both relevance and depth of understanding.

Findings

The principal research findings from the data concern the central phenomenon of “struggling for conformance”. Tanzanian Central Government adopted innovations in order to ensure donor funding by demonstrating its ability to implement imposed budgetary changes. Organizational actors were committed to these reforms through necessity and struggled to implement them, rather than more overtly resisting them.

Research limitations/implications

The research is subject to the usual limitations of case study, inductive research.

Practical implications

This research has several implications for policy-makers of NPM and budgetary reforms. These include the recognition that the establishment of the rules and regulations alone is not adequate for the successful implementation of budgetary and NPM reforms and should involve a comprehensive view of the nature of the internal and external environment.

Originality/value

There are few empirical papers of NPM accounting practices being implemented in the public sector of developing countries and none at all based in Tanzania. The paper identifies the existence of struggling to conform to reforms rather than resistance identified in prior research.

Details

Journal of Accounting in Emerging Economies, vol. 6 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2042-1168

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 December 2019

Tausi Ally Mkasiwa

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the new Budget Act (2015) and the new budget cycle influence and were influenced by the contextual environment of the Tanzanian…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the new Budget Act (2015) and the new budget cycle influence and were influenced by the contextual environment of the Tanzanian parliament and how this changed parliamentarians’ (MPs) budgetary oversight roles.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper employed analytical concepts explained in the contextual framework proposed by Alsharari et al. (2015) to explore changes in budgetary oversight roles after the implementation of the reforms. Interviews, video clips and document review were employed in the data collection. Data were analyzed using the thematic approach.

Findings

The values of the new Budget Act and the new budget cycle were in conflict with the prevailing institutions, political and power aspects. The MPs modified a few provisions in the new Budget Act and in the new budget cycle. Legitimating budgetary oversight roles as a result of institutional pressure emerged but stopped. Although there was a change in MPs formal powers and MPs involvement in budgetary oversight, there was stability as the change was ineffective.

Research limitations/implications

The paper only extracted relevant aspects of the contextual framework, which were sufficient to achieve the objective of the paper. Moreover, the study was conducted only a few years after the implementation of the reforms. Therefore, it might be too early to reach conclusions. Yet, the paper serves as the basis for further studies investigating changes in budgetary oversight roles after the implementation of the reforms.

Practical implications

In order for the parliament to hold the government accountable to the electorate, there is a need for reforming the nature of the government system, improving MPs capacity, harmonizing Budget Act with prevailing constitution and demonstrating the political will to use MPs’ formal powers. The findings suggest that effective change in budgetary oversight by focusing on formal institutions only is unlikely.

Originality/value

This paper provides a more robust explanation on how the integration of institutional, political and power aspects shape budgetary oversight roles in parliaments. It is the first paper to explore accounting change using the contextual theoretical framework in an organization of a parliamentary nature. The paper responds to Kim’s (2018) call for conducting case studies to explore changes in budgetary oversight roles by investigating potential attributes of institutions when operating in practice.

Details

Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management, vol. 32 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1096-3367

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 May 2012

Chandan Sharma

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the factors that determine Public Private Partnership (PPP) in infrastructure by using a unique data set on Private Participation in…

3465

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the factors that determine Public Private Partnership (PPP) in infrastructure by using a unique data set on Private Participation in Infrastructure (PPI) for the period 1990‐2008. The study mainly focuses on developing countries, because these countries need PPP arrangement more urgently than any other group of countries.

Design/methodology/approach

For the analysis, a range of advanced panel estimators, namely random‐Poisson, negative binomial, random‐generalized least square (GLS), random‐tobit, zero‐inflated Poisson (ZIP), are utilized to overcome the potential data‐related problems and for the robustness check of the estimated results.

Findings

The results of the analysis suggest that large size and relatively higher income markets attract more PPP projects. The empirical evidence also suggests that macroeconomic stability, quality of regulation and governance are important factors in determining PPP in the infrastructure. Surprisingly, however, the evidence fails to provide any strong support for the role of political factors and budget constraint in the process.

Practical implications

The findings of this study will help the policymakers of developing countries in framing up such policies, so as to encourage more private firms to engage in infrastructure building through PPP.

Originality/value

The paper describes the first attempt of its kind to investigate the determinants of PPP in the context of developing countries.

Details

Transforming Government: People, Process and Policy, vol. 6 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-6166

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 May 2015

Mark Button, Chris Lewis, David Shepherd and Graham Brooks

– The purpose of this paper is to explore the challenges of measuring fraud in overseas aid.

2348

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the challenges of measuring fraud in overseas aid.

Design/methodology/approach

The research is based on 21 semi-structured interviews with key persons working in the delivery of aid in both the public and voluntary sectors. It uses the UK Department for International Development as a case study to applying more accurate measures of fraud.

Findings

This paper shows there are significant challenges to using fraud loss measurement to gauge fraud in overseas aid. However, it argues that, along with other types of measures, it could be used in areas of expenditure in overseas governments and charities to measure aid. Given the high risk of such aid to fraud, it argues helping to develop capacity to reduce aid, of which measuring the size of the problem is an important part; this could be considered as aid in its own right.

Research limitations/implications

The researchers were not able to visit high-risk countries for fraud to examine in the local context views on the challenges of measuring fraud.

Practical implications

The paper offers insights on the challenges to accurately measuring fraud in an overseas context, which will be useful to policy-makers in this context.

Social implications

Given the importance of as much aid as possible reaching recipients, it offers an important contribution to helping to reduce losses in this important area.

Originality/value

There has been very little consideration of how to measure fraud in the overseas aid context, with most effort aimed at corruption, which poses some of the same challenges, as well as some very different challenges.

Details

Journal of Financial Crime, vol. 22 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1359-0790

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 August 2019

Tausi Ally Mkasiwa

The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of budgeting in the monitoring functions of the Tanzanian Parliament, specifically the monitoring functions of the Parliamentary…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of budgeting in the monitoring functions of the Tanzanian Parliament, specifically the monitoring functions of the Parliamentary Budget Committee (PBC).

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses Burchell et al.’s (1980) accounting “machines” framework and its development as a theoretical lens to interpret the research findings. Interviews, document analysis and observation were used for data collection.

Findings

The findings reveal that budget documents were used as learning and answering machines, as they served as the basis for questioning, for checking variances, for reviewing and for conducting monitoring visits. Budgeting procedures were utilized as ammunition machines, as they were used as the basis for expressing legislative officials’ positions and understanding the logic of executive officials’ actions.

Research limitations/implications

The paper investigates the role of budgeting in a parliamentary setting. However, comparative analysis is missing. Nevertheless, the results provide a foundation for future studies and the opportunity to investigate the role of budgeting in the monitoring functions of other parliaments, especially in emerging economies.

Practical implications

The study has practical implications directed toward governments, especially in emerging economies. This study suggests that budgeting documents and procedures can be used to overcome the complexities of the PBC monitoring functions. Budgeting is, therefore, essential in the monitoring functions of the PBC, especially in emerging economies.

Originality/value

The study contributes to the understanding of the role of budgeting in monitoring functions in a parliamentary setting in emerging economies, where such research is lacking. The study also contributes by introducing an “ammunition” role to the theoretical literature on budget use (Simons, 1990, 1991; Abernethy and Brownell, 1999), which is argued to be relevant to politicians and organizations of a political nature, including parliaments.

Details

Journal of Accounting in Emerging Economies, vol. 9 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2042-1168

Keywords

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