The Open Budget Survey, a global comparative study assessing transparency, oversight, and participation in national budgets, has released its latest report. The findings indicate that Tanzania is under-performing in public participation in the budget process but has shown improvement in budget transparency.

In terms of public participation, Tanzania scored 13 out of 100, slightly below the global average of 15. The report highlights that Tanzania scored low during the budget formulation and implementation stages. While the country has established a pre-budget submission process, the report advises several key improvements, including piloting mechanisms to involve the public in monitoring budget implementation.

Additionally, the report recommends expanding engagement mechanisms during budget formulation to include any civil society organization or member of the public who wishes to participate. It also suggests that parliament should allow public and civil society testimonies during budget hearings before approval.

Furthermore, it advises the Controller and Auditor General to create a formal mechanism for the public to contribute to relevant audit investigations by inviting public input, suggestions, or feedback on key investigations or areas where the audit should focus.

On the transparency front, Tanzania improved its score to 41 out of 100, a significant increase from previous scores of 10 in 2017, 17 in 2019, and 21 in 2021. Despite this improvement, Tanzania still falls into the category where only limited information is available, below the global average of 45.

The report notes that one of the issues contributing to Tanzania’s low score is the late publication of the enacted budget. It also calls for the timely publication of mid-year reviews and year-end reports to further enhance transparency.