Government-by-Government Assessments: Djibouti
During the review period, the government published the enacted budget and end-of-year report within a reasonable period. It did not publish the executive budget proposal within a reasonable period. The government did not make information on debt obligations, including major state-owned enterprise debt, publicly available within a reasonable period. Public budget documents did not provide a substantially complete picture of the government’s planned expenditure and revenue. Financial allocations to and earnings from state-owned enterprises were not included in public budget documents. Budget documents were not comparable year-to-year or prepared according to internationally accepted principles. The supreme audit institution did not meet international standards of independence. While the supreme audit institution’s most recent audit report covered the entire annual, executed budget, the report did not contain substantive findings, recommendations, and narratives. The sovereign wealth fund did not have a sound legal framework that established its independence from the presidency. The fund did, however, disclose its source of funding and general approach to withdrawals.
Djibouti’s fiscal transparency would be improved by:
- Making executive budget proposal publicly available, including online;
- Publishing information on government debt obligations, including for major state-owned enterprises;
- Including up-to-date allocations to, earnings from, and debt holdings of state-owned enterprises;
- Providing a substantially complete picture of the government’s planned expenditures and revenue in its budget documents;
- Ensuring budget documents are comparable year-to-year;
- Preparing budget documents according to internationally accepted principles;
- Ensuring the supreme audit institution meets international standards of independence and publishes audit reports of the government’s executed budget;
- Ensuring audit reports contain substantive findings; and
- Establishing a sound legal framework for the sovereign wealth fund.