Presentation on SIGMA PFM Monitoring in English given at the SAI Network meeting on 16 March 2022.

1. Results of the SIGMA
Monitoring for
Public Finance Management
Bianca Brétéché
SIGMA
0

2. Overall: moderate progress
Most progress observed in Albania, Kosovo and Serbia
1

3. Variation across technical areas of PFM
2

4. 3
• Medium term budgets are prepared and annual budget cycle is orderly,
increasingly credible/disciplined and transparent
• Financial management and control (PIFC) legislation and guidance is in
place
• Public procurement legislation is well aligned with EU standards
• Independence of Supreme Audit Institutions is largely ensured and
technical capability of SAIs are steadily improving
Strengths

5. 4
• Medium term budget not yet used as a strategic tool
• Use of managerial accountability as a principle to organise the State is weak
• Internal audit is too fragmented to make a difference
• Relatively low trust of public in the independence of SAIs
Challenges and weaknesses

6. 5
Medium term budget not yet used as a strategic tool linking
fiscal to strategic policy planning

7. Managerial accountability reduced by a high and growing
number of first-level budget organisations.
6

8. 7
Internal audit units cannot deliver quality audits

9. External Audit
8
0 1 2 3 4 5
Serbia
NorthMacedonia
Montenegro
Kosovo
Albania
WB5
2017 2021

10. Regional average SAI Independence
9

11. Falling public trust in half of the region
Mixed developments in public perception of SAIs
10
-30
-20
-10
0
10
20
30
40
Albania Bosnia and
Herzegovina
Kosovo* Montenegro North Macedonia Serbia Regional average
Percentage point change from 2017
Courts and judiciary Parliament Government Ombudsman SAI

12. Regional average audit effectiveness
11

13. Developments in implementation of SAI
recommendations
12

14. Audit reports not effectively used by all Parliaments
13

15. Room for improvement
- Attention and use of audit results by Parliaments;
- Trust in SAIs independence;
- Implementation rate of recommendations;
- Application of audit standards;
- Quality assurance.
14

16. Thank you for your attention!
All country monitoring reports, regional and thematic
summaries can be found on the SIGMA Website:
https://www.sigmaweb.org/publications/monitoring-
reports.htm
15