Honourable Seedy Keita, Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs of The Gambia attended the CABRI/ODI Global International Conference on Public Finance in the Digital Era last November in South Africa. Honourable Keita was among the panelists for the final session of the conference which was dedicated to 'Shaping the Global and Regional Agenda on DPI - 2025 and Beyond'.

Awarded '#1 Champion of Digital PFM in Africa' by CABRI at the conference, in this interview, Honourable Keita talks about how The Gambia has been working to improve its digital public financial management (PFM) through a number of initiatives and the implementation of the country's Digital Transformation Strategy.

Honourable Keita shares how digital tools have allowed his Ministry to further its public finance agenda in regards to transparency and reporting of public expenditures to the citizens of The Gambia as well as the timeous preparation of the national budget through its integrated financial management information system (IFMIS) and highlights how technology has enhanced the operations of the Gambian Revenue Authority significantly. In fact, next year, the Government of The Gambia is rolling out IFMIS to all public entities.

Honourable Keita firmly believes that technology is a key enabler of service delivery and that ministries of finance have a key role to play in furthering the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) agenda.

"It is not business as usual," he says, adding that "DPI is at the centre stage of improved governance, service delivery and accountability."

It is to be noted that The Gambia is celebrating its 10th anniversary as a CABRI member country.

The digital transformation inspirational story of a small yet mighty nation on the continent!