Expenditure Visibility

Can citizens play a direct role in shaping your government's budget? Participatory budgeting (PB) offers just that opportunity, turning ordinary citizens into key decision-makers in the allocation of public funds. This democratic process is revolutionizing the way budgets are crafted and implemented, involving the public in each critical phase: preparation, authorization, execution, monitoring, and evaluation. The Government of Bahrain reaches out to civil society to obtain information, points of view, and ideas on how the government's budget should be spent.

Budget Cycle

Budget Preparation: A two-year state budget initiated by the Ministry of Finance and National Economy (MOFNE), this phase involves a thorough assessment of the government's financial status, including revenues, expenditures, and cash flow. The MOFNE also identifies the government's objectives for the upcoming budget period interlinked with the Government Plan (Arabic only).

After determining the fiscal policies and spending ceilings for the next two fiscal years, the preliminary estimates of the state budget are discussed and reviewed in relevant ministerial committees, once approved a memorandum is then submitted to cabinet for review, after which a circular is issued to the ministries and government entities for the preparation of initially approved budgets.

Budget Consultation: At this stage, the MOFNE will prepare the draft law approving the state budget after receiving the estimates from ministries and government entities and will engage with them for their input.

Budget Approval: the draft law is submitted to the relevant ministerial committee and cabinet respectively for approvals, after which is submitted to parliament for review and final approval, ensuring transparency, collaborative decision-making, and accountability. Once approved, a law is issued approving the state budget by his Majesty the King.

Budget Execution: Once the law approving the state budget is signed, a circular of the MOFNE is issued regarding the implementation of the law and MOFNE allocates funds to ministries and government entities, kickstarting the implementation phase.

Budget Monitoring and Evaluation: This final stage involves the MOFNE overseeing government spending and assessing the budget's effectiveness, making adjustments for the next cycle. Also, all the ministries and government entities which are subject to State Budget Law are responsible to report to MOFNE on a quarterly basis regarding their activities, development of their financial position, and the implementation of projects.

In late 2018 the government announced its Fiscal Balance Program, which sets out a roadmap for addressing Bahrain’s fiscal challenges over the medium-term, with the overall objective to achieve a balanced budget by 2022, which target has subsequently been revised to 2024 to reflect the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the lower international oil price environment in 2020 and 2021.