| Project Detail |
The Project will be financed by a recipient-executed trust fund (RETF) grant in the amount of USD 1.2 million. It will support the gradual implementation of Public Sector Accounting policies consistent with IPSAS. Specifically, it will provide support to the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and budget institutions in the following areas: (i) capacity building and training for finance and audit staff on the application of the new accounting policies, procedures and information collection; (ii) the gradual implementation of the new framework, preparation of initial balance sheet and interim financial statements, consistent with the scope of the country action plan, and (iii) change management implementation and project management. The RETF activities are crucial to support the country systems, strengthen local capacity and promote country ownership of reform agendas. The RETF activities will be complemented by a Bank-Executed Trust Fund (BETF) grant in the amount of USD 0.817 million. The BETF will provide technical assistance and advice to adapt the legal and institutional framework to enable the implementation of financial reporting in line with the IPSAS requirements as well as implementation support to the RETF. Both RE and BE activities aim to create an enabling environment conducive to the adoption and implementation of the IPSAS based accounting framework in the Albania public sector that will create the foundations for strengthened fiscal transparency and accountability. Its effective implementation is expected to improve the quality and reliability of Albania’s public sectors financial information. The proposed activities, as envisaged in this second phase of the reform, aim to strengthen the Public Sector Accounting legal and institutional framework, support the identification, assessment and compilation of opening balances, and continuation of capacity building and change management activities. The Project would be coordinated and implemented over a four-year period with the MoF. The MoF will handle the overall project coordination across different departments, line ministries and agencies, Institute of Statistics (INSTAT), State Audit Institution (SAI), training institutions, universities and Professional Accounting Organizations (PAOs). A core team, also known as Project Implementation Team (PIT), composed of government officials from the General Directorate of the Harmonization Public Financial Internal Control (GD PFIC) and Treasury will be responsible for day-to-day management and coordination for both RETF and BETF activities. A local consultant will be hired to support the PIT. General Directorate of Finance and Contracting will handle fiduciary aspects of the RETF part. The Project Steering Committee (“PSC”), established by MoF during the previous phase and composed of high-level officials from various stakeholders, will continue to provide project oversight. The Project Development Objective is to improve public sector financial reporting and accounting practices in central government. |
