Day: July 24, 2024

Digepres receives a representative from the World Bank to discuss economic aspects and future projects for the country

The World Bank is committed to continuing to provide technical and financial support so that the country can continue to advance reforms and projects for the benefit of its citizens. The Director of the General Directorate of Budget (Digepres), José Rijo Presbot, met with Gabriel Zaourak, Senior Economic Policy Economist at the World Bank, to discuss budgetary support for the Dominican government and potential policies to further improve economic resilience and transparency in the country. During the meeting, the Director of Budget was accompanied by Odilys Hidalgo, Director of Budgetary Services; Rafael Jovine, Director of Economic Studies and Financial Monitoring; and Ana Miguelina Terrero, Head of Budget Performance Evaluation. Zaourak was joined virtually by Anna-Maria Bogdanova, Senior Disaster Risk Management Specialist; Victoria Alexeeva, Disaster Risk Management Specialist; and María Alejandra Scheker Lora, Procurement Specialist. Jean Michel Lobet, Senior Specialist in Finance, Competition, and Investment, and Carmen Amaro, Operations Officer, were present. The opening remarks were delivered by the Director of the Budget, José Rijo Presbot, who thanked the local and international attendees for their participation. He emphasized the government's efforts to improve the economic performance of state institutions, thereby promoting poverty reduction and creating a more just and equitable society. During his presentation, Rijo Presbot highlighted the ongoing transformations to the Financial Management Information System (SIGEF), which will lead to a new management model starting in 2026 regarding budget projection, concept, and functionality. He also discussed actions under the Results-Based Budgeting (RBB) strategy in public management and its connection to the allocation of resources to goods and services and their measurement. Finally, he addressed legislation related to Organic Budget Law No. 423-06. “In terms of legislation, we are working on the draft amendment to the Organic Budget Law to align it with the 2010 Constitution, the National Development Strategy, and the Fiscal Responsibility Law, the latter impacting legislation, debt, and spending limits under a fiscal rule,” José Rijo Presbot emphasized during his presentation. For his part, Rafael Jovine, Director of Economic Studies and Financial Monitoring, focused his remarks on areas of the General State Budget and the country's results achieved under the Open Government model in public management. This model, based on access to information, citizen participation and collaboration, and accountability, has allowed the country to rank fourth globally out of 125 countries and first among Latin American and Caribbean countries in transparency, according to data from the International Budget Partnership's (IBP) Open Budget Survey of the Dominican Republic. Ana Miguelina Terrero based her presentation on the evaluation of budgetary programs, the measurement of public spending efficiency, and contributions to gender equality and the most vulnerable sectors. She also explained the actions being taken regarding government public funding to address and promote climate action and gender equality in the country. Proposals for a Citizen-Centered Administration: In the meeting with representatives of the World Bank, Budget Director José Rijo Presbot also expressed President Luis Abinader's interest in continuing to work towards extraordinary and structural changes in the public sector in education, health, security, and the fight against corruption. This includes a functional classification and goals aimed at improving the quality of life for the people. Finally, Gabriel Zaourak, Senior Economic Policy Economist at the World Bank, after reviewing the data and information provided by the Budget team, expressed the World Bank's interest in further strengthening ties with the Budget Office in the future to provide technical and financial support so that the Dominican Republic can continue to promote reforms and projects for the benefit of its citizens. The exchange between the two entities took place in the Digepres office.