The Ministry of Finance recently highlighted the 2023 Global Open Budget Survey (OBS) results, which have spotlighted Egypt’s advancements in transparency, budget oversight, and public participation over the last two years.

Published in May with Dcode Economic and Financial Consulting as the lead researcher for Egypt, the report indicates that Egypt’s transparency score has risen to 49 (out of 100) from 43 in 2021, surpassing the global average of 47 points.

Egypt has improved its position by six spots in the 2023 Open Budget Survey, now ranking 63rd among 125 countries.

Additionally, the Public Participation Index saw Egypt’s score increase by 16 percent to 35 out of 100, up from 19 in 2021, placing Egypt eighth globally and maintaining its position as the top performer in the Middle East for the second consecutive year, ahead of Jordan and Morocco.

According to the Ministry of Finance, Egypt’s progress in public participation is attributed to its efforts to involve the public, particularly women and v
ulnerable groups, in all stages of budget preparation, implementation, and monitoring, and to expand coordination with local entities.

It also achieved a 54 percent score in financial oversight, exceeding the global average for the first time.

The finance ministry noted that its Transparency and Community Participation Unit have improved its efforts to produce accessible information on the medium-term budget framework, the country’s debt trends and more.

The report emphasized the need to maintain timely publication of reports, present public expenditures by functional classification, update debt information in monthly reports, make program and performance budgets publicly accessible, and submit them to Parliament.

The report also highlighted Egypt’s participatory budgeting model as a case study in the 2023 global report, noting its expansion from Alexandria and Fayoum to governorates like Assiut and Beni Suef.

Source: State Information Service Egypt