Transparency and Participation in Public Financial Management: What Do Budget Laws Say?

An increasing number of governments, as well as international and civil society organizations, are promoting the public disclosure of budgetary information and calling for greater citizen participation in budget processes. Fiscal transparency is increasingly seen as an important precondition for effective governance, improved economic performance, and prudent fiscal policy, resulting in lower deficits and debt accumulation. In addition to generating economic benefits, fiscal transparency also functions as a political expression of democratic governance, giving citizens and taxpayers information that they are entitled to — and that they can use to hold their governments accountable.