International organizations have encouraged national governments to switch from traditional cash-based to business-like accrual accounting, on the presumption that long-run benefits may outweigh substantial implementation and operating costs. We use a quasi-experimental setting to evaluate...

During the last two decades, France introduced a series of far-reaching reforms intended to bring about greater transparency towards Parliament, autonomy and flexibility to public managers, and rigor in to fiscal policy making.

Financial management is a critical capability for governments, enabling them to deliver on their priorities and fulfil promises made to parliament and citizens. Skilled human resources are the foundation of these capabilities. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD)...

While it is recognized that effective state institutions are pivotal for economic development, it is not well understood what their origins are and what explains their cross-country differences. We focus on budget institutions in developing economies, as efficient public finance planning in such...