Page 26 - CMA Journal (May-Jun 2026)

A r t ic les S ec t ion

Public Voice and Formal Accountability Federal and provincial governments provide detailed
Public Money, Public Voice: From Disclosure to There are two general ways of citizen participation: budget documents annually, while the Ministry of

pu

Finance has instituted some forms of participation,
public scrutiny and institutional review. The rst is such as pre-budget deliberations and an online
Accountability in Pakistan's Budget Process direct participation with active involvement in consultation (International Budget Partnership,

ex
decision making, the second indirect through
intermediaries and elected o cials. Civil society 2024b). However, it's not just a question of whethe

information exists. A powerful framework for health
experts review budgets, the media disseminates the public discourse and public debate is that informat
Every June, Pakistan's federal Budget is presented lead to public results to the public and citizens raise questions about should be timely, understandable and serve pu
before the National Assembly, comprising of understanding or services provided. It is then transferred to Parliament, democratic utility. This discrepancy is readily evi
comprising thousands of pages of estimates, grant accountability for their Auditor General and the Public Accounts Committee to the 2023 Open Budget Survey. Pakistan's budget th
requests, and annexes. It is deliberated, enacted, and repercussions (International question, examine and follow-up public spending. transparency score was 30 out of 100, which is Pe
no
documented within weeks. The documents are public, Budget Partnership, Institutional channels need to be used to respond to signi cantly lower than the global average of 45 an
the process adheres to constitutional principles, and 2024b). public pressure and formal review will not happen signi cantly lower than the 61 required for an mo
the amounts involved are trillions of rupees. The The subsequent step in without public attention. The network directly informed public discussion. It received a score of

challenge facing Pakistan's Budget is not one of Pakistan's budget translates civic engagement into relevant institutional out of 100 for its public participation. The same
con dentiality, what often lacks is a public dialogue transparency should not accountability by uncovering data, disseminating evaluation revealed that the audit review received
regarding the implications of those gures: which involve increasing ndings, and imposing legal or administrative checks. score of 61, while the legislative review received
The connection between the budget cycle,
educational institutions, healthcare facilities, disclosure, but rather the institutional review, and citizen feedback is illustrated score of 28 (International Budget Partnership, 2024

infrastructure projects, and the associated costs for encouragement of Rabia Sabri, FCMA in Figures 1 and 2. 2024b). To establish an open, transparent, and h
various stakeholders. Head of Academics, accountable framework, the authorities need to shif
dialogue. The transparency Institute of Business Where Pakistan Stands from the usual reactive disclosures to proactive
Public Money Is Held in Trust of the Budget is Management (IoBM) publication of policies and procedures. The open
conditional Pakistan has an operational budget process, an budget survey score was improved in the earlier
Public funds are generated through national resources, upon the citizens, civil society, the media, Parliament, independent audit institution, Public Accounts assessment, followed by a fall. The reason was due
taxation, tari s, and borrowing, which rely on the the Auditor General, the Public Accounts Committees, Committees, and an increasing amount of published delays in publication of key documents, during the
anticipated earnings of future taxpayers. The core and public nance professional’s ability to understand, scal information. review period, like the citizens budget and some

principle of public nance and democratic challenge, follow, and observe the execution of the In-year reports. It directly lowers the transparenc
accountability is that governments act as trustees Budget, as well as the repercussions of the Auditor score. Some of the published documents were less
rather than owners of that wealth, which belongs to General's ndings. comprehensive than in the earlier round, and not
the public. In recent years, a noticeable decline in complied with the OBS methodology (such as detailed

public trust in state institutions has become Disclosure Is Not Dialogue performance or nancial data). pr
increasingly in Pakistan. In scal year 2024-25, debt Governments that uses "surface-layer" or There needs to be a balance of technocratic expertise bu
servicing absorbed approximately 70% of tax revenue, Transparency is a transformation from a "document "pseudo-transparency” as a cover to produce “open” and democratic accountability. There are often The public value of an e ective audit function is
41% of current expenditure, and public debt dump" to actionable accessibility. The IMF's Fiscal frameworks that conceal real decision-making allocations without user-centered outcomes, fail to undermined when legislative review, follow-up

amounted to 70.8% of GDP (State Bank of Pakistan, Transparency Handbook, which expands on the IMF's processes. It is paradoxical that too many, confusing translate into tangible bene ts for the actual public public communication are inadequate. The audit o
2025). Reform of public nancial management, Fiscal Transparency Code, considers the quality, regulations are imposed on stakeholders, while service users. More citizens' involvement can help results focus on surface level symptoms and it fail
budgeting, and governance is a key element of the timeliness and credibility of scal information to be important state activities take place behind the facade establish trust and direct accountability in that citizens address the underlying systemic failures. Jabbar a
country's Fund Facility arrangement with the integral parts of scal transparency, in addition to the of democracy. The government uses compliance, to are more likely to be heard and to accept di cult scal Butt (2026) highlight that budget documents are oft

International Monetary Fund (IMF), which was availability of scal information (International release information to placate international lenders or choices. World Bank service delivery research shows complex and challenging to understand, inconsistent
approved in September 2024 for a 37 month duration Monetary Fund, 2018). According to OECD (2015), the international bodies such as the Open Government that accountability is undermined through presentation and ine ective in conveying informatio
(International Monetary Fund, 2024). The general guideline on Budgetary Governance, the governments Partnership but doesn't make it accessible to the stakeholder’s lack of information, and through their about priorities, revenue and expenditure disclosur
sentiment is similar: Pakistan improved to 28 in score should strive to make budgetary debates inclusive, public. Table 1 displays the two approaches involved in interactions with politicians and service providers. They emphasize the importance of citizens’ ag

on the Corruption Perceptions Index released in participatory and pragmatic, making it possible to budget making process and its impac on governance. Making the process open can lead to recognition of participation in the budget design, approval and
February 2026, though its rank slipped to 136 out of understand and participate in budgetary choices for overly optimistic nancial targets, expectations, and execution, and not limited to the post-decisional
182 countries (Transparency International, 2026). The parliaments and citizens. Global Initiative for Fiscal Why Citizen Participation Strengthens resource distribution within the budget process that phase. bu
bene ts of public expenditure are frequently Transparency embodies the concept of citizens' Financial Governance no longer meet citizens' needs. Professional Contribution to Budget re
inconsistent, despite the fact that the citizens of entitlement to be involved in the process of designing Making budget decisions can't just occur in a vacuum.

Pakistan are burdened by the country's intricate and and implementing scal policy (Global Initiative for They should represent the experiences and realities of The engagement of the public in the accountability of Accountability Th
regressive tax system. Citizens are entitled to a more the public and should be acceptable to taxpayers. budgets is one of the least developed aspects Participatory budgeting needs neutral, transparent,
de nitive input in the allocation and utilization of Fiscal Transparency, 2012). This distinction is important Citizen participation in budgeting refers to citizens worldwide. The open budget survey of 2023 assessed accessible nancial information that is releva
public funds, as tax revenue remains below the 15% of because disclosure (sharing) and conversation having formalised and meaningful opportunities for 125 countries with an average score of 15 out of 100 in service delivery. The public o cials, legislators,
GDP threshold required to enhance scal capacity. (accessibility) results in di erent questions. The gap is participation in and deliberation on budgeting public participation criteria. Nevertheless, in countries and independent regulatory bodies needs follow up
Pakistan's budget process is challenged by a between accountability and the procedural processes: like consultation before the nalization of that prioritize participation, budget information is not framework and cost performance to evaluate the valu
transparency paradox: budget documents are documentation due to jargons used, lack of time to the document, monitoring during the process of only disclosed, but also subject to public scrutiny and creation in term of societal, economic, and to

produced and circulated, yet they do not consistently focus on them and not being part of public services. executing the budget and post audit feedback option. accountability. non-economic bene ts. The PEFA framework also re

24 ICMA’s Chartered Management Accountant, May-Jun 2026