Transcript Use of Country Systems

Country Systems
AN INTRODUCTION
Outline
1. What are Country Systems?
2. What does it mean to use country systems?
3. Why does the ‘use of country systems’
matter: what are the benefits and risks?
4. How do external partners use country
systems?
5. What are current commitments on country
systems?
What are country systems
Definition from Development Cooperation:
“National arrangements and procedures for public
financial management, accounting, auditing,
procurement, results frameworks and
monitoring” (Paris Declaration Definition, 2005)
Core National Procedures
Planning
Accountability
& Reporting
Budget
Auditing
Treasury
Accounting
Procurement
Broadening the definition
 Of country

‘Whole of Society’ approach to the definition of country
systems, including local CSOs and private sector (USAID,
2013)
 Of systems

Policy cycle from design to implementation, to evaluation or
accountability measures (ODI, 2013)
What does it mean to use country systems?
Why does it Matter?
Benefits of using country systems
 Shift focus towards strengthening a country’s own
systems instead of parallel ones
 Reduces duplication and transaction costs
 Improves ownership over results of financing
 Ensures the sustainable management of resources in the
future
 Strengthen transparency and domestic accountability
over public resources more generally
Risks of using country systems
 Political: external funders may lose control over strategic




objectives
Programmatic: results may be too slow
Institutional: weaknesses in domestic controls
Environmental: poor regulations to mitigate negative
effects
Fiduciary: funds are not used for intended purposes
Lessons From Health…
What evidence do we have of external partners using
country systems?
Examples from Development Cooperation:
 48% of donor funds Use country PFM systems in 2010 (target 55%)
 43% of donor funds recorded in government accounting systems (target
75%)
 Fiduciary risk trumps development risk in decision
to UCS
 But increasingly, country led development of strategies for UCS
 Partner country leadership in the decision to
Use Country Systems crucial
 Use not just linked to specific aid modality
 Not an end in itself
 Political economy impacts on decision to use country systems
Percentage of ODA managed through country public financial
management systems (2005, 2007 and 2010, selected African
countries)
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
2005
2007
2010
International commitments on country systems
Busan Partnership document
 §19: the use of country systems should be the default approach for
development co-operation in support of activities managed by the public
sector
 §34: continue to support national climate change policy and planning as an
integral part of development countries’ overall national development plans,
and ensure that – when appropriate – these measures are financed,
delivered and monitored through developing countries’ systems in a
transparent manner.
New Consensus on Effective Institutions
 Linking use of country systems to better public service delivery
 Partner led assessments and evidence on Country Systems
 Strengthen domestic accountability institutions