Innovative Reach-Out to Line Ministries through Blending Learning
Participants from ten countries in South East Europe attended our first blended learning journey, consisting of three weeks of online learning and a face-to-face workshop. We are increasingly combining different learning formats into blended learning initiatives.
This learning event aimed to support the public officials of line ministries to better carry out their tasks in the budget preparation process, and engaged them in reflection on the merits of current budget drafting procedures and ways of improving them. This initiative continues and further deepens our efforts to reach out to finance officials at line ministries (and other budget users) to strengthen their role in the budget process.
In the e-learning phase, participants exchanged views on recent innovations in public financial management in their countries, discussed their budget preparation processes, and reflected on the challenges of fiscal coordination. Leading experts provided feedback at a range of short online webinars. The e-learning phase allowed us to ensure a shared understanding of the issues discussed, and to surface shared challenges already ahead of the workshop. In addition, our learning community had a chance to grow closer and develop mutual trust to increase the benefits of face-to-face learning.
At the workshop we took a closer look at the wider context of budget preparation at line ministries (e.g. with respect to the EU context and countries’ structural reform agenda), discussed the linkages with strategic planning, and simulated a budget re-negotiation case. A Dutch expert talked how the Netherlands organize their budget process from the perspective of a line ministry.
One of the participants concluded, “I would like to say many thanks for the workshop and for all your help and support during these last three weeks. Everything was excellent and very professional. I would also like to thank the speakers for their excellent and instructive presentations as well as the staff members of the CEF for their efforts to make everything work out perfectly. It was really a pleasure to be part of it.”
With that event we concluded the first half of our 2016 learning program in the thematic area of Budget Preparation and Execution (BPE). A significant part of the program, including the blended learning initiative, has been funded by the Dutch Ministry of Finance. We look forward to our cooperation with the Dutch experts and the ministry in delivering BPE learning initiatives in the second half of the year.
To follow our blended learning journey, check out our digital story.