Budgeting Partisan Needs: Kosovo, European priorities and the Government budget planning 23 pages, pdf  Download Back

BUDGETING PARTISAN NEEDS:
Kosovo, European priorities and the Government budget planning
Policy Analysis 04/2012

Publisher: Group for Legal and Political Studies (GLPS), Kosovo

Date: July 2012

Volume: 23 pages, pdf


Description

In countries in transition, the political elites adjust the state budget to their political/partisan needs and aim to ensure long-term control over state administration, thus avoiding establishing mechanisms that could hamper their partisan monopolies and interests. The budget planning is an indicator of commitment vis-a-vis the implementation of national policies, and, as such, it should correspond to the policy priorities of a state. In particular, the budget expresses the government’s commitment to a policy, and, of course, indicates the level of priority assigned to it. On the other hand, a critical determinant of the success of a particular country in addressing the European policy standards is the extent to which the European priorities are linked to and supported by the state budget. Budget analysis is crucial for both evaluating government decisions about allocation and distribution of limited resources among competing priorities and for assessing whether adequate resources reflect properly the recognized priorities.
In short, the report argues that the determination of budgetary priorities does not support the Kosovo Government European agenda, as a policy tool to achieve both country’s institutional transformation and long term development. The report affirms that Kosovo has a politically oriented budget allocation rather than a budget that addresses the European priorities. In particular, the report acknowledges that the ranking of European priorities in government agenda and their (lack of) representation in the budget don’t reflect any serious commitment to achieving timely progress on the European agenda vis-a-vis the budgeting process.