The Open Budget Index 2017 showed a modest decline in average global budget transparency scores, from 45 in 2015 to 43 in 2017 for the 102 countries that were surveyed in both rounds. This decline is in stark contrast to the average increase of roughly two points documented in each round of the survey between 2008 and 2015.
The Open Budget Index 2017 notes that in terms of transparency, Tajikistan has 30 out of 100 scores. The Open Budget Survey 2017 says Tajikistan should prioritize the following actions to improve budget transparency: publish an audit report online; produce and publish a mid-year review; and increase the information provided on expenditures and revenues provided in the Executive’s Budget Proposal.
In terms of public participation, Tajikistan has only 7 out of 100 scores. The survey notes that Tajikistan should prioritize the following actions to improve public participation in its budget process: pilot mechanisms for members of the public and executive branch officials to exchange views on national budget matters during both the formulation of the national budget and the monitoring of its implementation; hold legislative hearings on the Audit Report, during which members of the public or civil society organizations can testify; and establish formal mechanisms for the public to assist the supreme audit institution in formulating its audit program and to participate in relevant audit investigations.
In terms of the budget oversight (by legislature and audit), Tajikistan reported has 65 out of 100 scores.
According to the survey, Tajikistan’s legislature provides adequate oversight during the budget cycle. This score reflects that the legislature provides limited oversight during the planning stage of the budget cycle and adequate oversight during the implementation stage of the budget cycle.
The survey says Tajikistan should prioritize the following actions to make budget oversight more effective: ensure that legislative committees examine and publish reports on their analyses of the Executive’s Budget Proposal; ensure a legislative committee examines and publishes a report on the Audit Report online; ensure audit processes are reviewed by an independent agency; and consider setting up an independent fiscal institution to further strengthen budget oversight.
The Open Budget Index is the world’s only independent, comparative measure of central government budget transparency. The Index assigns countries covered by the Open Budget Survey a transparency score on a 100-point scale using a subset of questions that assess the amount and timeliness of budget information that governments make publicly available in eight key budget documents in accordance with international good practice standards. Each country is given a score between 0 and 100 that determines its ranking.
