Government-by-Government Assessments: Republic of the Congo
During the review period, the government made its enacted budget widely and easily accessible to the general public, including online. However, it did not make its executive budget proposal or end-of-year report publicly available within a reasonable period of time. Information on debt obligations was not publicly available. Budget documents did not provide a substantially complete picture of the government’s planned expenditures and revenue streams. The government maintained off-budget accounts not subject to audit or oversight. Publicly available budget documents did not include allocations to, earnings from, or debt information of state-owned enterprises. Because of a lack of budget execution reports, budget reliability could not be assessed. The supreme audit institution did not meet international standards of independence and did not make audit reports available for review. The criteria and procedures by which the government awards contracts or licenses for natural resource extraction were specified in law, but the government applied the law inconsistently. The government made basic information on natural resource extraction publicly available. The Republic of Congo’s fiscal transparency would be improved by:
- making its executive budget proposal and end-of-year report widely and easily accessible to the general public;
- making information on government debt obligations available;
- providing a more comprehensive accounting of off-budget accounts and subjecting such accounts to audit and oversight;
- detailing allocations to, earnings from, and debt information of state-owned enterprises in budget documents;
- enhancing the completeness and reliability of budget reporting and information on debt obligations,
- ensuring the supreme audit institution meets international standards of independence and publishes audit reports within a reasonable period of time; and
- ensuring the government follows applicable laws and regulations in awarding contracts and licenses for natural resource extraction.