Sustaining Gains and Forging New Paths Ahead:
Fiscal Openness Commitments for the Next Decade
Bogotá, Colombia | August 2-4, 2022
Background
In partnership with the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit of Colombia and the City Government of Bogotá, the Global Initiative for Fiscal Transparency (GIFT) hosted the Stewards General Meeting (SGM) 2022 from August 2-4, 2022 in Bogotá, Colombia, in a hybrid setting.
As GIFT enters its next decade, the SGM 2022 is particularly timely and relevant. There is a need for GIFT stewards to revisit strategies, identify main goals for the next 10 years and find ways to work better together to address challenges that confront the network. Significant improvements on fiscal transparency have been achieved, but public engagement in the budget processes is only starting and efforts to achieve more inclusive and responsive budgeting are still incipient. Working together as a network, GIFT stewards must continue persisting, advancing, and innovating in fiscal openness.
Bringing together representatives from ministries of finance, civil society, international development institutions and other stakeholders, the SGM 2022 agenda consisted of hybrid in-person and virtual meeting sessions. Colombia’s Ministry of Finance and Public Credit and the City of Bogotá also hosted field visits that will provide a unique opportunity to benchmark and learn from their inspiring budget transparency and public participation efforts.
Objectives
The main objectives of the SGM 2022 were to:
- Provide updates and capacity-building on the latest initiatives, norms, and guidance in advancing fiscal transparency and public participation in the budget process;
- Discuss budget strategies for inclusion and minorities responsive budgeting, such as SDG tagging (gender, children) and inclusive development budget alignment;
- Facilitate in-field peer-learning on budget transparency and public participation;
- Strengthen collaboration and cohesion among GIFT network members; and
- Draft GIFT’s strategic plan for the next decade.
The Stewards General Meeting 2022 consisted of hybrid in-person and virtual meeting sessions via Zoom Teleconference. English, French, and Spanish interpretation were made available for all hybrid sessions. All hybrid sessions were accessible remotely upon registration via Zoom teleconference.
Please find relevant photos, presentations and session recordings from the SGM 2022 Sessions below.
Disclaimer: Please also note that some session recordings may not be complete due to technical glitches encountered during the conduct of the hybrid sessions.
DAY 1 | August 2, 2022 | Tuesday, UTC -05:00
This session aimed to officially launch the 2022 Stewards General Meeting, featuring welcome remarks from GIFT, Ministry of Finance and Public Credit of Colombia and the City of Bogotá representatives, and a presentation on the overview of the agenda and rules of engagement for the three-day event.
Session recording: [Youtube Video]
This session served as an opportunity for all GIFT Stewards to provide updates on their action plans and latest initiatives in advancing fiscal transparency and public participation in the budget process.
Presentations
- Updates from Argentina – [PDF]
- Updates from Bogota – [PDF]
- Updates from IMF – [PDF]
- Updates from Mexico – [PDF]
Jamboard – [Link]
Session recording: [Youtube Video]
Led by the GIFT Coordination team, this session presented updates on norms, membership, and activities of the network moving forward.
Presentations
- Presentation of the GIFT Coordination Team – [PDF]
- Updates on Transparency Principles for Tax Policy and Administration – [PDF], [Webpage]
- Updates from Bogota – [PDF]
Session recording: [Youtube Video]
This session provided a platform to feature and discuss international experiences on implementing budget strategies for inclusion and cross-cutting priorities responsive budgeting.
Presentations
- Presentation from the IMF – [PDF]
- Presentation from the Ministry of Economy of Argentina – [PDF]
- Presentation from UNDP – [PDF]
- Presentation from Paraguay – [PDF]
- Presentation from Colombia – [PDF]
Session recording: [Youtube Video]
This session provided a venue for the deeper understanding of the results of the OBS 2021 and the Public Finance Module of the GDB and discuss the experiences of high performing countries.
Presentations
Session recording: [Youtube Video]
DAY 2 | August 3, 2022 | Wednesday, UTC -05:00
Note: DAY 2 activities are field visits, so there will be no opportunity to join these sessions remotely.
This in-field study tour of Ciudad Bolivar showcased experiences, projects and results of participatory budgeting initiatives in the City of Bogotá.
Presentations
In this meeting, officials from the local government provided a comprehensive overview of the participatory budgeting process in Bogotá and the latest updates on their efforts to engage more citizens in analyzing and monitoring the local budget.
Presentations
- Presentation on the Observatorio Fiscal del Distrito – [PDF]
In this meeting, officials from the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit of Colombia shared their efforts in increasing fiscal transparency and promoting citizen engagement in the budget process at the national level.
Presentations
- Presentation from the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit – [PDF]
DAY 3 | August 4, 2022 | Thursday, UTC -05:00
This session will will have a panel with winners of user-engagement initiatives from all around the world, and discuss ways for government-civil society collaborations to expand and enhance the use of fiscal data, while making listening to the demand impactful.
Session recording: [Youtube Video]
Featuring country experiences and lessons learned from the implementation of the Strengthening Public Accountability for Results and Knowledge (SPARK) Initiative and the Fiscal Openness Accelerator (FOA) Project, this session will dive deep into challenges and lessons from public participation mechanisms that have succeeded in reaching out to marginalized groups while being impactful in the budget process.
Presentations
- Presentation of the OBS 2021 Public Participation Findings – [PDF]
- Presentation on the SWOFON Project – [PDF]
- Presentation on the FOA Project – [PDF]
Session recording: [Youtube Video]
This session provided an opportunity for GIFT stewards and leaders of institutions working in the public financial management space to discuss key reflections on the scenarios and greatest changes expected in the PFM field in the next decade and understand the implications and challenges for the GIFT community.
Presentations
- Presentation on the future of PFM and fiscal transparency – [PDF]
Session recording: [Youtube Video]
This served as the concluding session of the SGM 2022 towards strengthening the collaboration and cohesion among GIFT members and will feature reflections from selected GIFT stewards and remarks from the GIFT Coordination Team, Ministry of Finance and Public Credit of Colombia, and the City of Bogotá leadership.
Session recording: [Youtube Video]
