Finance ministry holds budget implementation workshop
Freetown, Jan. 23 (SLENA) – The Budget Bureau Department in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (MoFED) on Monday this week held a one day workshop on the implementation of activity based budget system for the fiscal year 2014 at the Miatta Conference Centre.
The workshop brought together Vote Controllers, Budget Committee Members, Programme Managers, Accountants and Procurement Officers.
In his opening remarks, the Chairman of the occasion who is also the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Energy, Alhaji Bannie Yillah Sesay, said it was the first time the Ministry of Finance is implementing an activity based budgeting, noting that stakeholder responsible for executing the budget needs training in order to be familiar with the processes and procedures.
Alhaji Sesay said the new mode of activity based-budget requires a review of the pending process and documentation especially the medium term expenditure framework.
The Senior Deputy Financial Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, Dennis Vandy told the audience that it was difficult for MDAs when they introduce the activity based budgeting and went on to describe the 2014 budget as a binding document that will usher in the implementation of Government activities with respect to Financial Management.
Speaking on the implementation of the budget, Dennis Vandy said there are key fundamental principles while accessing the allocation and aligning the Agenda for Prosperity in costing activities, emphasizing that the activity based budgeting will form the baseline in future monitoring of activities and programs.
Delivering his keynote address, the Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Dr Khelfala Marah, stressed on the expenditure of resources and efficiency in accessing resources. He added that at the end of 2012 government had over two hundred billion on unattended bank checks in the Bank of Sierra Leone which led to for rationalization as well as going for zero borrowing.
He called on ministries, department and agencies to work with the Ministry of Finance in delivering the Agenda for Prosperity as their support is vital in providing efficient Services, noting that the Agenda for Prosperity not only focuses on infrastructure but also on people development and that the rationale behind the training process was to share with the participants the intricacies and discussed with them exactly how they moved from line budgeting to activity based budgeting in order to instill fiscal discipline within the system so that they will be efficient as well effective in delivering development.
He reiterated that now that we are in 2014 they have decided to move from line budgeting to activity based budgeting in order for them to be efficient and went on to appeal to all and sundry to work with the Ministry of Finance so that they will be able to deliver in the true spirit of the Agenda for prosperity.
Also speaking at the workshop was the Director of Budget, Matthew Dingie.
HB/MoFED/SLENA
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