[{"bbox": [84, 97, 242, 121], "category": "Section-header", "text": "Lessons Learnt:"}, {"bbox": [84, 132, 1147, 222], "category": "Text", "text": "The pace and sequencing of the PFM reform have been marked by political instability and weak communication among the ministries. As a result, decisions have been delayed, and processes have been interrupted or slowed. The protracted approval of the PFM reform action plan results from those factors."}, {"bbox": [84, 229, 1149, 508], "category": "Text", "text": "Despite the government and its external partners (PFM sector: EC, Australia, USAID, IMF, WB) placing a high priority on capacity building, the need for more skills in implementing PFM reforms remains a significant challenge. Timorese authorities, especially at the executive level (director-general and staff), need help understanding the budget aid programs' spirit and (tight) procedures. Likewise, there needs to be more understanding of the importance of a policy/strategy and appropriate implementation mechanism, with discussions regarding budget support revolving mainly around indicators. This lack of knowledge could be because the dialogue maintained with senior MoF officials is not passed on to intermediate levels (who feel more evaluated and less benefited from the exercise). Also, newly appointed ministerial-level officials tend to focus on often more pressing policy and political issues, making it challenging to keep PFM reform at the top of the political agenda)."}, {"bbox": [84, 517, 1147, 606], "category": "Text", "text": "Therefore, it will also be crucial to maintain regular political dialogue at different levels with national authorities, particularly with the decision-making structures at the Ministry of Finance, civil society, line ministries, and other government institutions involved."}, {"bbox": [84, 615, 1149, 762], "category": "Text", "text": "The Timorese administration's absorption capacity could be more robust. The government organisations have partially internalised the outputs of the PFM reform. However, reliance on technical assistance is still necessary to ensure the continuity of the new tasks and procedures. Human resources are generally limited and need more qualifications in the PFM domain. Moreover, a severe problem with staff retention in the public administration is mainly apparent in the line ministries and the local administration."}, {"bbox": [84, 773, 1149, 1015], "category": "Text", "text": "Public finance reform and administrative decentralisation are part of the institutional reforms that have been more closely supported and monitored by the EU through previous budget support programmes and respective complementary measures. These reforms have progressed much slower than initially anticipated due to the abovementioned factors. The need for qualified human resources, compounded by a strong management culture in the public administration, affects the preparation and implementation of the reform instruments. Those constraints have been offset by technical assistance, advising that the objectives of public interventions and related technical assistance take into account the time needed to develop and adopt innovative methods and processes within the administration, focusing on the transfer of knowledge, to create adequate local capacity."}, {"bbox": [84, 1023, 1149, 1143], "category": "Text", "text": "Over the last years, significant investment has been made in developing staff capacity in different PFM domains. Still, despite the progress made in the same areas, the overall impact of improving PFM governance needs to be made apparent. A comprehensive needs-based capacity assessment is required to design a capacity-building strategy. These actions should be carried out in the context of implementing the PFM reform action plan."}, {"bbox": [84, 1152, 1149, 1520], "category": "Text", "text": "Language is a significant communication issue within the administration. The coexistence of four languages (Portuguese, Tetum, English, and Indonesian, the first two being the official languages) is a factor that does not facilitate communication and dialogue between the stakeholders involved in the reform processes. The legislation is drafted in Portuguese, but most PFM tools are developed in English and eventually translated into Portuguese and Tetum. However, the managerial and technical staff speak mainly Tetum and communicate with the external stakeholders using English as a lingua franca. This situation makes communication dysfunctional, increases the time needed to prepare and implement decisions, and substantially increases the transaction costs of administrative action.\n\nOn the digital services side, Timor-Leste has an emerging ICT sector characterised by only one-third of its 1.3 million population having access to broadband services, an apparent digital divide, the presence of three major mobile operators (after liberalisation in 2012), and persistent challenges in infrastructure availability and affordability. The country's power sector also faces several challenges related to high technical and non-technical losses, weaknesses in the distribution network, and high generation costs."}, {"bbox": [84, 1529, 1147, 1650], "category": "Text", "text": "No regulations still guide the leasing of fibre transmission for connectivity purposes. The country is challenged by a need for more technically competent human resources. As a result, development in other sectors, such as mobile financial services, is slowed due to constraints in rapid ICT development. Nevertheless, a comprehensive set of legislative projects have been initiated, including but not limited to:"}, {"bbox": [1008, 1665, 1127, 1690], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 26 of 41"}]