Why Budgets Matter: The New Agenda of Public Expenditure Management.

This paper looks at budgets and the evolving theory and practices surrounding their use in the developing world. There has been a growing tendency to appreciate the importance of the complex web of actors and institutions involved in the budget process, and to link budgets with measurable results. This in turn has affected the nature of both public sector management and reform, and development assistance. This paper suggests ideas for the orientation of future research in this area.