Background

The Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) aims to achieve the goals set out in the interim constitution, in the context of a decentralized system of governance characterized by transparency, accountability and equitable resource allocation. Achieving such goals is a challenge in many developing countries, but even more so in Southern Sudan, where infrastructure and communications networks across the south are limited, an estimated 3 – 4 million displaced people are in the process of returning to their homes, service delivery is almost non-existent and establishment of basic rule of law and human security remains a challenge. In addition, since the GoSS has been in existence for less than two years, its institutional capacity is still weak, and government planning and financial management systems are still in the process of being established. Nonetheless, the GoSS has access to significant resources with which to fund its expenditures. Its share of oil revenues currently amounts to US $1.3bn per annum, while it also benefits from approximately US $300m of development aid from international donors on an annual basis, almost one third of which is channeled directly to Government projects through the Multi-Donor Trust Fund.

In order for the Government to use these substantial resources effectively to meet the objectives set out in the transitional legal framework, it needs to develop a strong, participatory planning and budget framework which guides resource allocations and expenditures in a transparent manner, in line with Government priorities and the needs of the people of Southern Sudan.

The Support to Economic Planning Project builds on UNDP’s one-year Aid Management support project to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MoFEP), which finished in January 2007. The Aid Management support project assisted MoFEP in initiating the budget sector working group planning process, and in developing the GoSS aid strategy for the coordination of donor aid.

Objectives
The overall objective of the Support to Economic Planning Project is to provide institutional support to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, GoSS so that:
• The capacity of the Government of Southern Sudan’s Budget Sector Working Groups for planning, budgeting and reporting enhanced.
• The Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning empowered to lead the development of a GoSS Development Framework, based on the outputs of the GoSS Budget Sector Plans.
• Donor and UN projects increasingly formulated, co-coordinated and reported on, in line with the Government of Southern Sudan’s development priorities and economic development needs.

Snapshots of the project's major achievements
The first phase of the Support to Economic Planning Project ran from January 2006 – January 2007, as the Aid Management Project. The Aid Management Project assisted the Government of Southern Sudan to:
• Establish a Government-wide planning mechanism through the establishment of ten GoSS Budget Sector Working Groups.
• Develop the GoSS Aid Strategy for donor co-ordination.
• Use donor participation in the Budget Sector Working Groups as a mechanism for aid co-ordination.
• Establish regular donor co-ordination meetings (the Quarterly Donor Forum).
• Institute systematic donor project appraisal mechanisms (the Inter-Ministerial Project Appraisal Committee).

In 2007, the Support to Economic Planning Project has continued to build on these achievements by,:
• Strengthening the GoSS Budget Sector Working Groups through the provision of specialist training on drafting 3-year Budget Sector Plans.
• Assisting the Ministry of Finance to initiate a ‘bottom-up’ approach to planning by including the Director-Generals of the ten States of Southern Sudan in consultations on the ten draft Budget Sector Plans for 2008-2010, drafted by the GoSS Budget Sector Working Groups.
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• The Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) expenditure priorities initiated
• In contribution to establishing and strengthening a financial accountability systems in the Government of Sudan, UNDP has supported the GoSS in launching the 2008 budgeting cycle factoring in lessons learnt in the last cycle and focusing on improvement in planning. For the first time, the GoSS has included in the planning and budgeting process the participation of NGOs in the Budget Sector Working Groups (BSWG)
• Trained 400 officials from the ten GoSS BSWG in preparation of their respective Budget Sector plans.
• Trained the Directors of the State Ministries of Finance along with the GoSS officials on the BSWG preparations. Adopting this process, the GOSS is expected to strengthen the linkages between the planning and budgeting process in the States and at the GoSS level.
• There has been a shift in focus from annual sector budgeting to three-year planning and budgeting cycle for the GoSS enabling the government undertake mid to long-term economic planning as opposed to the annual budget planning of the previous year. This is a shift for the evolving capacity of the government as well as its preparedness to tackle recovery and development issues systematically through a participatory and inclusive process with the States.