Question

Critically evaluate the Governance, Ethics and Accountability for Public Funds

(Requesting a detailed assistance on this so please do not spoil it with short and off topic answers)

Answer 1

Public Funds are the money given by people of the country to its Government in form of Tax, Fee, Penlaty, Fine Etc.

So it become important to make sure that the people'e money is to be used for welfare of people & society.

It can be done by using good Governance, Efficint Ethics and Setting Accountability for use of Public Funds.

Lets Evaluate one by one :

1. Governance: Good Governance hold the government accountable for use of public funds in two stages. Firstly, before the beginning of each year, it scrutinise and approve the Union Budget which contains the expenditure priorities, taxation proposals, and borrowing requirements for the upcoming financial year. Second, it examine the audit reports on the approved spending to see whether the allocation was used effectively and appropriately. Further, CAG (Comptroller and Auditor General of India) in India is also require to do audit of Governement Department & to make sure that the people money is being utlilised in best possible manner making the optimal use of resouces & to make sure that there are less chances of any fraud & corruption. Furhter in united nations, The Public Sector Committee (PSC) is a standing committee of the Council of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) formed to address, on a coordinated worldwide basis, the needs of those involved in public sector financial reporting, accounting and auditing. In this regard, the term “public sector” refers to national governments, regional governments (e.g., state, provincial, territorial), local governments (e.g., city, town) and related governmental entities (e.g., agencies, boards, commissions and enterprises). The PSC has been given the authority, on behalf of the Council, to issue standards, guidelines, studies and occasional papers on financial reporting, accounting and auditing in the public sector.
2. Ethics :   Ethics is somthing that tells us what is good or what is bad. Public Financial Management (PFM) relates to the way governments manage public funds and the impacts on the growth of the economy and the wellbeing of citizens. Managing public resources involves how the government earns money, known as revenue, and how the government spends money, or expenditure. Revenue may come from taxes, money earned by state enterprises, or foreign aid, for example. Expenditures are, for instance, government wages, purchasing goods and services, and spending on infrastructure and public services. Finance Minister begins with Budget Formulation and Preparation. Officials at the Ministry of Finance look at how much money the government will earn from all possible sources, and how much money the government intends to spend. Using this information, the government develops a Budget Plan, and determines how much money should be allocated for each sector and Ministry. The National Assembly is responsible for approving this yearly Budget Plan.Once the Budget Plan is approved, its Execution begins. This is how the money gets spent; that is, how the money goes from being collected to being used. In modern PFM systems, Budget Execution is done through an IT system called Financial Management Information System (FMIS). Lao PDR is currently upgrading to a modern FMIS with funding from the World Bank.At the end of each year, the Ministry of Finance prepares a document that summarizes how the money was spent. Then the State Audit Organization validates the information by auditing the annual financial statements. With the new FMIS system, reporting and auditing will become easier, faster, and more transparent.
   
3. Accountability : The current climate of increased accountability in public sector organizations has brought attention to the ethical dimension of corporate governance. The conceptual-theoretical terrain as set out in two dimensions: ethics as applied moral philosophy; and corporate governance as the moral health of an organization. At an operational level, corporate governance provides a framework to evaluate the overall integrity of an organization and embraces the inter-related themes of individual responsibility, social equity and political responsibility. The essential factors of a public service code of conduct can be divided into five categories. These categories or principles are fairness, transparency, responsibility, efficiency and conflict of interest. These principles are the basic 8 elements of democratic accountability in relation to public sector decision-making and actions. Those issues are not only the obstacles that the public service officer faces in internalising these principles but, also, the challenges for a pro-active management in fostering such internalisation. For Example In India if you want to know about any expenditure details of Indian Government you can file RTI for the same. These all are the pillars to make Govenment accountable in every aspect.

Thankyou!!