“You can have transparency, but so what?” At the @IMFNews Town Hall in Bangkok, @OpenBudgets Yuna Farhan asked Kristalina Georgieva how the IMF could better support civil society, oversight institutions and government reformers who hold budgets to account. Her response: transparency needs accountability mechanisms behind it—and civil society brings ideas the IMF can help governments adopt. Today, we launch the #OBS2025 Asia results, measuring transparency, public participation and oversight together. 🕑 14:00 Bangkok | 07:00 GMT #AM2026Thailand #BudgetAccountability @IbpIndonesia

The @OECD has launched important guidance for members to inform development efforts to #endpoverty. The guidance on reducing poverty and inequalities through development assistance has a strong people-centered approach, recognizing the essential role communities and civil society can play in driving solutions. Our senior director for strategic engagement Cynthia Romero joined the launch, stressing how development partners can help governments raise and spend public funds effectively toward these goals. She urged development partners to: 1️⃣ Foster government's own domestic capacities. 2️⃣ Provide long-term, flexible funding to civil society so they can build civic infrastructure and bring their lived experiences, data and solutions to bear esp. on budget execution challenges. 3️⃣ Support oversight allies (legislatures, auditors, media) and their partnerships with civil society. "If ODA is leveraged to help governments raise and spend their own public resources better, it can a transformative impact in the fight against poverty and inequality." Watch remarks here: bit.ly/4zNlPHt. Read the full guidance here: bit.ly/4zNlrbZ and policy highlights here: bit.ly/4ixvzj8. #EndPoverty #SDG1 #openbudgets

Fourteen countries publish their audit report. Six executives say what they did about it. That is the gap across Asia and the Pacific, per the Open Budget Survey 2025. Audit oversight outscores legislative oversight in 16 of 18 countries, but that strength reflects formal protections more than follow through. It can be done. Malaysia’s Auditor General’s Dashboard keeps audit issues public until resolved. Vietnam’s National Assembly examined the 2022 state budget accounts within weeks and published its findings. Swipe for the myths, and tell us what would make audit follow up easier to track where you live. internationalbudget.org/open…

How can IMF program negotiations strengthen democratic accountability? On October 16, IBP joined a roundtable hosted by Verité Research on “Guarding Democratic Governance within IMF Programme Negotiation” at the Annual Meetings in Bangkok. The discussion examined how negotiations conducted almost exclusively with executive branches can sideline legislatures, courts and independent institutions—and how a more inclusive process could strengthen domestic oversight. Participants explored practical reforms, including sharing information earlier with legislatures and incorporating program benchmarks that reinforce domestic checks and balances. Bringing oversight actors meaningfully into the process can help ensure that decisions with lasting consequences for public budgets are subject to democratic scrutiny. #AM2026Thailand #DemocraticGovernance #Accountability #PublicFinance

Debt risks outside conventional debt management systems can have real consequences for public budgets, essential services and households. At the IMF–World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok, IBP co-hosted “Debt Governance 2.0: Governing Risk Beyond the Debt Perimeter” with the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), the Sovereign Debt Forum and Energy for Growth. Our Global Lead for Policy and Research, Sally Torbert, moderated a session at the October 12 opening roundtable and spoke at the October 16 Civil Society Policy Forum panel. The discussions explored risks arising from state-owned enterprises, public-private partnerships and government guarantees. Using energy financing as a case study, participants examined how these obligations can affect government budgets—and the people who depend on them. A central focus: strengthening fiscal risk disclosure, institutional oversight and accountability so governments can identify and manage risks before they become public liabilities. #AM2026Thailand #DebtAccountability #FiscalTransparency #PublicFinance

That’s a wrap on Bangkok! 🎉 IBP was at #IMFWBAM2026, launching the #OpenBudgetSurvey 2025 Asia Pacific results and asking how countries can move from budget disclosure to real accountability. Our @IbpIndonesia Country Director @yunafarhan shares 4 takeaways 🎥👇

How can donors help tackle poverty & inequality? At the OECD guidance launch, IBP’s Cynthia Romero outlined 3 priorities: 🔹 Strengthen government delivery 🔹 Fund civil society for the long term 🔹 Build accountability partnerships #BudgetAccountability

Live from Bangkok at #AM2026Thailand 🇹🇭 “Information thins out and accountability weakens precisely when public money is being spent and fiscal risks materialize.” — Yuna Farhan, @IbpIndonesia Country Director At “Beyond Disclosure,” IBP and partners are examining the #OBS2025 findings for Asia and the Pacific with government, civil society and international institutions. Yuna called for civil society, oversight bodies and government reformers to work together—following public money from national budgets down to communities. The goal: turn greater transparency into stronger oversight, meaningful public participation and better services. Thank you to @SECO_CH, @FCDOGovUK, the @EU_Commission and our regional partners for their support and collaboration. #WBGMeetings #BudgetAccountability

Starting soon! Today, we launch the Open Budget Survey 2025 regional report for Asia and the Pacific at the Civil Society Policy Forum during the IMF–World Bank Group Annual Meetings. Join International Budget Partnership and partners for our Civil Society Policy Forum event “Beyond Disclosure: Making Fiscal Governance Work for People in Asia and Pacific” as we share the findings and discuss how public finance decisions can become more accountable to the people they affect. 🕑 14:00–15:30 Bangkok time (7:00-8:30 GMT) 📍 QSNCC, Room 2-210A, Bangkok, and online 🌐 Thai interpretation (in person); French, Arabic, Thai and Spanish via Zoom. (please note other language interpretation will not be available in this venue) Join us: internationalbudget.org/even… Supported by: State Secretariat for Economic Affairs SECO, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, European Commission.

Join our event today here: internationalbudget.org/even…

What will the latest Open Budget Survey reveal about public budget accountability in Asia and the Pacific? The OBS report for this region will be released tomorrow, alongside the event “Beyond Disclosure: Making Fiscal Governance Work for People in Asia and Pacific,” part of the Civil Society Policy Forum during the IMF–World Bank Group Annual Meetings. Join IBP and our partners to explore the new findings and discuss what they mean for public finance across the region. 📅 13 October 2026 | 14:00–15:30 Bangkok time 📍 QSNCC, Room 2-210A, Bangkok, and online 🌐 Thai interpretation (in person); French, Arabic, Thai and Spanish via Zoom. (please note other language interpretation will not be available in this venue) Register: internationalbudget.org/even… #OBS2025 #AM2026Thailand #WBGMeetings #BudgetAccountability

How can public money work better for people? Join @OpenBudgets & partners for “Beyond Disclosure” and the OBS 2025 Asia-Pacific report launch. 📅 13 Oct | 14:00–15:30 Bangkok time 📍 Bangkok & online Register: internationalbudget.org/even… #OBS2025 #AM2026Thailand

An approved budget is only the beginning. @ibpnigeria's #PULSESummit is turning commitments into trackable action for better public services. What happens after the summit? Read our blog: internationalbudget.org/how-…

We are pleased to welcome Andres Mejia Acosta, Chris Lane and Michael Oloo to the IBP Board of Trustees, effective October 1, 2026. Together, they bring decades of work on governance, public finance, debt and tax, from inside governments, international institutions, academia and civil society. We also thank our current Board members for their continued guidance. Please join us in welcoming our new trustees. Want to know more about them? Click here: internationalbudget.org/pres…

#WeAreHiring! Senior Health PFM Advisor IBP is seeking a senior technical professional to provide technical expertise for its growing health PFM portfolio. The Advisor will provide direct technical assistance and capacity strengthening to country teams and civil society partners; help teams diagnose and address problems in how health resources are planned, budgeted, released, spent, and accounted for; and develop the research methods and diagnostic tools that ground this work in evidence. Deadline: 1pm (GMT) on 22 October 2026. For more information and to apply: ibp.bamboohr.com/careers/51

Our September newsletter is out! 📩 This month, we’re highlighting how stronger citizen engagement and budget accountability can help turn public resources into better services. Here’s what’s inside: ☑️ Accountability gains in MENA: Lessons from our Casablanca convening and partners working to strengthen citizen influence over budget decisions across the region. ☑️ PULSE Summit in Nigeria: More than 500 stakeholders came together to tackle the gaps between budget approval, implementation and last-mile service delivery. ☑️ Partner spotlight (Jordan): Meet Sawa’a for Community Development and learn how community-led budget advocacy is driving change. ☑️ New reads + what’s next: Fresh insights on gender-responsive budgets, climate action and upcoming engagements at the IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok. 📩 Read the full September newsletter: mailchi.mp/internationalbudg…