The CABRI philosophy is based on the following guiding principles:

• We believe in sustainability and budget discipline. We need to budget for what we can afford, and to strive for increasing self-reliance
• We believe in affordable and sustainable public debt that is guided by a credible debt and cash-management strategy
• We promote strong local debt capital markets that allow for the execution of borrowing programmes with minimum costs and risks
• We believe in creating space and procedures for accountable and transparent political decision-making. No PFM system can be functional without political buy-in, support and oversight
• We hold that there must be one transparent process, based on policy priorities and performance, that allocates all budget revenue
• We make sure that the practices and procedures we apply in planning and execution truly work towards achieving value for money. This includes good cash-management and procurement practices
• We believe in the rule that “the budget you vote for is the budget you execute”, and that, with regard to both execution as well as planning, transparency should be a guiding principle
• We maintain that a functional PFM system requires a properly functioning ministry of finance. This means that officials have or learn the skills they need, are given clear roles and responsibilities, and have demonstrable organisational and implementation capabilities, including the habits of critical reflection, organisational learning and adaption
• And last but not least, it is CABRI’s firm belief that accountability is at the core of every functioning PFM system. As a consequence, the structures, procedures and rules that ensure accountability must be enforced