Open Budget Survey 2012

January 2012 | By International Budget Partnership

The Open Budget Survey 2012 included 100 countries. Independent civil society researchers or research organizations collected the data, which was peer-reviewed and further analyzed by IBP staff. In addition, governments were given the opportunity to comment on the draft results for their country.

The Open Budget Survey 2012 included four methodological changes from previous rounds that are worth highlighting:

• The number of questions used to calculate the Open Budget Index went from 92 to 95, as additional questions were introduced to provide a more thorough assessment of Citizens Budgets, which are accessible, nontechnical presentations of budget information.
• A completely new section was introduced on public engagement in the budget process to assess the extent to which the three main institutions surveyed (executive, legislature, and supreme audit institution) provide spaces for public participation in budget processes.
• Existing questions used to gauge the strength of the legislature were modified and others were added to better assess the role that legislatures play in the budget process.
• The number of questions used to score the strength of auditing institutions was reduced to four.

Though findings indicate that the state of budget transparency around the world is generally dismal, there has been progress. 2012 Survey evidence suggests that any country, irrespective of geographical location or income level, can perform well on budget transparency. The importance of a government’s political will to achieve better budget transparency cannot be overstated.

Download resources below to learn more.

Open Budget Survey 2012 Downloads

Jump to: Full Reports | Key Findings | Open Budget Index Rankings | Methodology | Questionnaire and Guidelines | Datasets | Multimedia Resources

Full Reports

The Open Budget Survey 2012 full report includes information on the research methodology, key findings, country rankings, recommendations, and more.

• Open Budget Survey 2012 Report – English
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Report – Arabic
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Report – French
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Report – Portuguese
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Report – Russian
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Report – Spanish

Key Findings

This abbreviated summary focuses on key findings from the Open Budget Survey 2012.

• Open Budget Survey 2012 Key Findings – English

Open Budget Index Rankings

The Open Budget Index 2012 assigns countries a transparency score on a 100-point scale using 95 questions from the Open Budget Survey related to the amount of budget information made publicly available in the eight key budget documents.

• Open Budget Index 2012 Rankings – English

Methodology

Learn more about the research methodology used for the Open Budget Survey 2012.

• Open Budget Survey 2012 Methodology – English
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Methodology – Arabic
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Methodology – French
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Methodology – Portuguese
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Methodology – Russian
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Methodology – Spanish

Questionnaire

The Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire consists of 125 factual questions completed by independent researchers in the 100 countries. The bulk of the questions focus on the amount of budget information that is made publicly available in eight key budget documents.

• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire – English
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire – Arabic
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire – French
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire – Portuguese
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire – Russian
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire – Spanish

Questionnaire Guidelines

IBP provided researches in each of the 100 countries with the Survey questionnaires as well as a Guide to the Open Budget Questionnaire, which described the method to be used in completing the questionnaire and defined the types of evidence to be provided.

• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire Guidelines – English
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire Guidelines – Arabic
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire Guidelines – French
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire Guidelines – Portuguese
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire Guidelines – Russian
• Open Budget Survey 2012 Questionnaire Guidelines – Spanish

Datasets

• Excel database with data from 2006, 2008, 2010, and 2012

Graphics & Videos

Video: Learn more about the Open Budget Survey 2012 and why budget transparency is important.

Infographic: Key findings from the Open Budget Survey 2012, visualized.

• Open Budget Survey 2012 Infographic

Open Budget Survey Results by Country

• Open Budget Survey results and recommendations by country, downloads of country summaries, and completed Open Budget Survey questionnaires can be downloaded from the Open Budget Survey Results by Country main page.