Managing Government Expenditure

Abstract

This chapter has two objectives. First, it places public expenditure management (PEM) in the broader context of the role of the state, good governance, macroeconomic policy, and the changing environment (especially in information and communication technology). To view PEM only through a technical prism would fundamentally distort the picture. Second, the chapter provides a quick run-through of the entire expenditure management cycle. This chapter can therefore serve as a map of the book for the thorough reader, as well as a standalone sketch of the key issues for the busy public official (who should also read the last section of the concluding chapter 17). For both types of readers, we hope this brief overview will at least bring home the point that the management of public expenditure is neither a purely technocratic issue nor suitable for simple quick fixes, on the one hand, yet is always amenable to some practical improvement, on the other.