Zimbabwe Improves Public Budget Transparency Ranking
Nevanji Munyaradzi Chiondegwa
Zimbabwe has made significant progress in its public budget transparency and accountability ranking, according to the Open Budget Survey (OBS) released on May 29th, 2024. The country scored 63 out of 100, placing it 30th out of 125 countries assessed. This improvement positions Zimbabwe among the top performers in Sub-Saharan Africa, ranking third following South Africa and Benin.
This was revealed in a press statement by the Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Professor Mthuli Ncube this afternoon.
The OBS, a branch of the International Budget Partnership (IBP), is a global body dedicated to promoting transparency in public finance systems and processes. The survey, conducted and published every two years, assesses public participation, legislative and Supreme Audit Institutions oversight, and transparency in national budget processes across more than 125 countries.
This latest ranking reflects a significant improvement from 59 out of 100 recorded in 2021, placing Zimbabwe 18 points above the global average of 45 out of 100. Encouragingly, Zimbabwe’s Open Budget Index (OBI) has shown a positive trend since 2019, as depicted in the graph accompanying the press release.
The improvement in budget transparency signifies the Government’s efforts to rebuild public trust and strengthen democratic engagement, which are crucial for creation of equitable, just, and sustainable societies. This aligns with the engagement and re-engagement pillar of the NDS1, and contributes to attracting more funding for the country’s development from the international community including Official Development Assistance (ODA) and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).
Zimbabwe’s improvement is testament to the collaboration through technical and financial assistance from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), National Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (NANGOs) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) that have continuously supported capacity building efforts to improve the comprehensiveness of budget documents and enhance citizen participation in the budgeting process.
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