Government-by-Government Assessments: Haiti
During the review period, the government published its budget online within a reasonable period. However, the executive budget proposal and end-of-year report were not published online within a reasonable period. The government produced a summary of public finances in lieu of an end-of-year report. Budget documents were not prepared according to internationally accepted principles. Limited information on debt obligations was publicly available; however, the government did not publish the debt information of, allocations to, nor earnings from significant state-owned enterprises. Publicly available budget documents did not provide a substantially complete picture of the government’s planned expenditures and revenues. While actual revenues and expenditures did not reasonably correspond to those in the enacted budget, the government published a revised budget. The government maintained off-budget accounts that were not subject to the same oversight and audit as other expenditures. Topline military budget information was included in the budget, but it was not subject to civilian oversight. The supreme audit institution did not meet international standards of independence. It partially reviewed the government’s accounts, but it did not make its report publicly available within a reasonable period.
Haiti’s fiscal transparency would be improved by:
* Publishing an executive budget proposal and end-of-year report within a reasonable period;
* Ensuring the budget provides a substantially full picture by including major sources of revenue and expenditure;
* Providing more detail on allocations to, earnings from, and debt holdings of state-owned enterprises;
* Subjecting its military budget to civilian oversight;
* Ensuring adequate audit and oversight for off-budget accounts;
* Ensuring actual revenues and expenditures reasonably correspond to those in the enacted budget;
* Improving the reliability of budget documents by producing and publishing a supplemental budget when actual revenues and expenditures do not correspond to those in the enacted budget; and
* Ensuring the supreme audit institution meets international standards of independence and publishes timely and substantive audit reports.
Tags
Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs Division for International Finance and Development Haiti
Source: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs
