Role of technical assistance

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What should the IMF's Fiscal Affairs Department counsel when a country asks for advice on whether to pursue a new generation of performance budgeting reforms? Undertaking a risk assessment and developing a checklist enable the department to determine whether the country has the resources needed to carry out such a fundamental institutional change and whether appropriate technical assistance can successfully be delivered.

Among other things, a checklist should ask the following:

How well are the agents of change identified?

* How deep is the recognition of the need for change?

* How far up in government is the need recognized-at the minister of finance level or lower?

* How stable or established is the reform team?

Do the reformers have an adequate base from which to work?

* Is there adequate fiscal stability?

* Is there sufficient political and administrative stability?

* Can the up-front costs of reform be borne by the government in the short term?

* Does the existing system have basic levels of fiscal control and financial...