Engaging Citizens in Fiscal Transparency Initiatives - MOF and the GIFT Network

MOF and the GIFT Network -The Way Foreword- Macro-Fiscal Policy Unit/ Ministry of Finance Egypt October 2018

Contents MOF and the GIFT network 1 Digital Tools & Instruments to reach out to the public 2 Motivating citizens on budgets 3 MOF new commitments & Contribution on Fiscal Transparency & Public Participation 4

MOF and the GIFT network MOF was invited to attend several events and dialogues Open Government Conference in Cape Town, South Africa The launching of Brazil's Open Budget Transparency Portal Coordinating with the World Bank to arrange a high level regional meeting on budget transparency with 4-5 regional finance ministries and key focal points in Transparency & governance unit at a time when finance ministries are already convening (IMF & Wo rld Bank Spring meetings in Washington, D.C. on 20-22 April 2018) MOF was invited to attend several workshops and webinars A regional workshop in Jordan facilitated by IBP, IMF and WB To discuss the results of the 2017 Transparency Assessment across the Middle East in order to enhance and boost the next phase of disclosure and Public Participation on a regional level. 3 A webinar to a pilot project for Public Participation. 3

Digital Tools & Instruments Where to Find Interactive Website Social Media Campaigns on Facebook, Twitter & Youtube Videos & Caricatures Flyers Booklet for Kids Regular Reports: Citizen Budget Monthly Financial Bulletin Executive Budget Proposal Pre-Budget Statement Enacted Budget Mid-Year Review Year-End Report Participatory Budget along with NGOs (In Process) Open Data Platform (Under Preparation) https://goo.gl/3xfWcR https://bit.ly/2CPmPmR https://goo.gl/tZREXg https://goo.gl/uPjHoj https://goo.gl/8Fjzkn https://goo.gl/t3tPNK https://goo.gl/J4wNJG https://goo.gl/YRcD9C https://goo.gl/wWkHsM https://bit.ly/2zazE9z https://bit.ly/2x7Z837 https://bit.ly/2OcZD31 http://budget-ecpps.org/ Internal networking (Not launched yet) 4

Motivating Citizens on Budgets Distributing a simplified one-page handout throughnationalnewspapers to explain the major outline of the budget ortoexplainthenewtaxstructuresinEnglishandArabic Publishing videos and caricatures to explain the budget in a simplified way & raising awareness about approved budgetondifferentsocialmediaplatformswhetherprintedoronline. Organizingmeetingswithdecision-makers,businesses,CSOsandcitizenstodiscussspendingpriorities Governoratevisits,namelyinAlexandriatodiscussspecialized issuessuchashealthcare Holdingseminarsinpoor&marginalizedmunicipalitiestodiscussprojectsthatcouldalleviatetheirstandardofliving Holdingsocialdialogueworkshopsforgovernmentalandnon-governmentalbodies HoldingYouthgatheringsforuniversitystudents,likeAUC&GUCaswellashighschoolstudents Pilot mechanisms for members of the public and executive branch officials to exchange views on national budget mattersduringboththeformulation&implementationofthenationalbudget(Third-PartyMonitoring). Communicating with citizens to know their feedback and suggestions through different channels such as radio, television,interactivewebsite,videos,mobileapplication&socialmediawebsites Preparingaplanformonitoringfeedbacktoimprovetools PresentingaVoxPopwherecitizensinthestreetswereinterviewed RaisingawarenesstoassistParliamentMembersandjournalists 5

MOF New Commitments Establishing a Separate Transparency & Public Participation Unit within Ministry of Finance, which is an essential milestone in raising the country s transparency score to above 60 Better targeting citizens through Open Data Platforms to make it easy and user-friendly Improve the Timely Publication & the comprehensiveness of Budget Information for Public. Introducing Mechanisms for Social dialogue & Participatory Budgeting with civil society on transparency is sues, while enhancing Public Engagement and Participation among a wide range of Stakeholders (Private Sector, NGOs, Influencers, Journalists & Media, etc ). Raise Public Awareness through Conferences, Videos, Flyers, Workshops in more governorates in Egypt. Ensure Compliance with Open Budget Survey Requirements including the Release of the 8 Key Budget Reports. Hold public hearings in the presence of all stakeholders Suggest correction mechanism to improve budget performance and planning through Citizen s report, assessment & score cards. 6

MOF Contributions 1. Sharing Experience with peer countries about: Better comprehensiveness of data and reports Creative tools for enhancing public engagement Holding conferences with different stakeholders Empowering and Training the youth and various government officials Among our successful experiences:Alexandria Conference,AUC & GUC meetings 2. Promoting Network before other communities: Establish network among other line ministries, universities and CSOs through protocols to consider their feedback on Fiscal Policies, and to recognize the on-ground difficulties they Face in data gathering. Spreading the core values of Transparency among wider audiences 3. Creating Work Groups: Promoting open data platforms to boost public participation Cooperate with data distributors such as National NGOs or youth centers, as well as providing them training to be able to read, interpret and simplify the data and eventually distribute it in the best possible way according to the local culture 7

Thank you!