Strengthening budget practices is at the heart of CABRI's work. It is an essential element to better service delivery by the state and better development prospects. Across Africa, citizens are asking their governments to provide them with better services and often, this has to be done with limited resources. Developing a coherent framework for budget allocation and management is a continuous process, which takes account of both country circumstances and regional and international trends. In light of this, the seminar enabled senior budget officials to highlight budget reform priorities, gain a deeper understanding of how to undertake performance budgeting, find ways to integrate aid and PFM management, and carefully appraise and manage capital projects across the continent.

The seminar aimed to:

• Revisit budget reform priorities for the continent, taking into account different country contexts
• Explore the benefits of performance budgeting
• Examine the fiscal and budget policy choices countries were considering in response to the global economic slowdown
• Report back on CABRI's work on putting aid on budget in Rwanda and develop a CABRI response to the Accra Agenda for Action statement on Using Country Systems
• Further understand the opportunities and complexities for improving the planning, budgeting and management of capital projects in Africa