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Monitoring mechanism essential for gov't spending -- minister

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Anas Al-Saleh during the conference opening
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Anas Al-Saleh during the conference opening
KUWAIT, Feb 20 (KUNA) -- Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Anas Al-Saleh stressed the importance of adopting a mechanism to monitor and follow-up the government spending evaluating system.
Such a mechanism will contribute significantly in detecting all flaws and enhancing the efficiency of public financial systems in making higher income for government spending, Al-Saleh said in his opening speech Monday at the Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) conference.
Technical cooperation with the World Bank is the right way to attain high income for government spending in light of international experiences on financial and economic levels in attaining a sustainable economic growth, he noted.
Meanwhile, the four-day conference is part of joint cooperation agreements between the Kuwaiti government and the World Bank, which mainly aims to conduct an objective and all-out assessment of public financial performance, said the minister.
He also added that the economic reform document is also part of a number reformations in the country's financial management field, stressing the need for adopting practical and scientific standards and mechanisms to evaluate the current financial systems and improve their performance.
The finance ministry has adopted the PEFA program in 2014 as a key component of its development plan.
The program matches the country's economic reforms aiming to cut public expenditure and adopts transparency in controlling public spending, adjusting current spending growth rates and boosting investment spending levels.
The Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) Program was founded in 2001 as a multi donor partnership between seven donor agencies and international financial institutions to assess the condition of country public expenditure, procurement and financial accountability systems, and develop a practical sequence for reform and capacity building actions.
A Steering Committee comprising these agencies manages the Program, while the Secretariat implements the PEFA activities.
The goals of the PEFA Program are to strengthen recipient and donor ability to assess the condition of country public expenditure, procurement and financial accountability systems, and develop a practical sequence of reform and capacity building action. (end) km.ht.nsa.ma