2019/20 Budget Communication Final Budget Communication | Page 15

This Government promised accountability and transparency, and the work under this
component will move us far along in delivering on this promise
Mr. Speaker,
In addition to the work being supported by the IDB project, the Government is
advancing other legislative initiatives to solidify its efforts toward public financial management
reform. To that end, the Public Financial Management Bill, which is intended to replace the
existing Financial Administration and Audit Act (FAA), seeks to provide, among other things,
clarification of the roles and responsibilities of finance officers, reporting requirements,
accountability expectations for government agencies, expanded budget disclosure requirements
and the oversight of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs). Very importantly, this Bill will impose
specific criminal penalties for those that breech the public trust and who cannot account for their
actions in the management of public funds. This Bill is expected to be ready for public consultation
in the coming months, with anticipation of its introduction in Parliament by the end of this calendar
year.
iii. Strengthening the Ministry of Finance
Mr. Speaker,
Efforts have also continued this year to restructure the Ministry of Finance, in a bid to
increase its accountability and transparency, as well as to ensure that fiscal, economic and
budgetary management needs can be met with the appropriate skill levels. The government has
completed a professional assessment of the Ministry against international standards of what a
Ministry of Finance should look like to meet the needs of a modern Bahamas. In the coming fiscal
year, we will augment the Ministry’s skill sets in the key areas particular to Economics, Data
Analysis and Public Sector Finance by hiring a cadre of professionals with these skill sets to add
to the talent pool for the start of the new fiscal year.
The Ministry will add a Debt & Cash
Management Unit, a Data Analytics Unit, and it will establish a Public Procurement Department,
consistent with the pending procurement legislation.
iv. Fundamental Transformation of Government Accounting
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