Capital Management and Budgeting in Taiwan

In this chapter, the authors provide an overview of Taiwan's public infrastructure system using the recommended normative framework presented in Chapter 1. In general, most of Taiwan's practices fit the requirements suggested in Chapter 1. However, there are still rooms for improvements in prioritization, debt affordability analysis, and infrastructure maintenance. In addition, the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model and the so-called “Mosquito Buildings” also feature Taiwan's capital management and budgeting process and are discussed in this chapter. Nowadays, Taiwanese governments place much emphasis on disaster prevention, environmental protection, and renewable energy. These new trends may also affect Taiwan's capital management and budgeting process.

Capital Budgeting and Public Investment Projects in Ukraine

This chapter discusses the budget process for public capital investments in Ukraine, presents controversies in the current process, and offers several avenues for improvement. In doing so, the author provides a description of the country's normative capital public budgeting framework, presents the institutional setup, and tracks Ukraine's public capital expenditure trends for nearly three decades (1991-2016). The study then discusses implementation, audit, and performance issues in Ukraine's public capital expenditure management and provides recommendations. Because of the country's limited fiscal capacity as compared to its massive infrastructure needs, the author posits that Ukraine can no longer afford to delay or ignore its most pressing public capital investment needs. Because the current list of capital investment proposals is underfunded and too long, the author suggests that the government focuses on finishing strategic, high-priority public projects, while other capital spending proposals target private sector financing once it becomes more readily available.

A Systematic Public Capital Management and Budgeting Process

This chapter introduces the readers to a public capital management and budgeting process and its role in generating public infrastructure networks. The main purpose of the chapter is to describe the normative public capital management and budgeting practices that are recommended by the public finance literature. These normative practices are segregated into four main components: (1) long-term capital planning, (2) capital budgeting and financial management, (3) capital project execution and project management, and (4) infrastructure maintenance. Given that the literature recommends specific practices to maximize efficiency in public capital spending, the four main components, combined, are referred to as the systematic capital management and budgeting process. The systematic process discussed in detail in this chapter is used as a common framework for each of the 12 country case studies in describing their respective public capital management and budgeting practices.

Summary, Initial Observations, and Getting to a Tentative Theory of Public Investment Behavior

This chapter evaluates the 12 countries' capital management practices according to the systematic public capital management and budgeting process described in Chapter 1. The chapter characterizes and classifies the management practices of the twelve countries based on the authors' evaluation using the case study descriptions. The authors offer some initial observations based on comparisons across the case study countries and analysis of relationships between capital management and budgeting practices and political, economic, and public sector variables. The chapter proposes a tentative theory of public investment behavior and offers five propositions regarding the factors driving different practices across the case study countries and the consequences of a systematic capital management and budgeting process.

The Vietnam Capital Management and Budgeting Case Study

Divided into four parts, this chapter examines infrastructure investment in Vietnam through the lens of a normative framework for capital management and budgeting. Part 1 provides an overview of the country's socio-economic, political, and financial background that would affect the capital management processes. Part 2 introduces the status of Vietnam's infrastructure and its challenges. Part 3 is a comprehensive review of current procedures and processes of capital planning, budgeting, implementation, and maintenance being practiced in Vietnam. The authors then compare and contrast Vietnam's practices with the recommended provisions of the normative framework. Part 4 reviews the probable consequences associated with infrastructure inefficiency, which are implied by Vietnam's inconsistent practices with the framework. This chapter culminates with conclusions and recommendations for capital management and budgeting that are more specific to a developing country like Vietnam.

Public Capital Budgeting and Management Process in Moldova

As Moldova works toward building democracy and sustainable development, it is focusing its attention on increasing the effectiveness of public capital investment management. The chapter summarizes the current legal framework and practices in the field of capital management and budgeting in Moldova and compares the processes with a normative framework for effective capital investment management, focusing on capital planning, capital financial management, capital project execution and management, and public infrastructure maintenance. The analysis demonstrates that the public capital management and budgeting process in Moldova at the level of planning, allocation, and implementation of capital budgets falls short of its potential. The case reveals that despite a promising budgetary reform and comprehensive legal framework, the process of capital budgeting and management in Moldova remains ineffective due to institutional, economic, and political constraints.

The Case of Public Capital Budgeting and Management Processes in the United States

This chapter provides a case study from the United States regarding public capital budgeting and management on the federal, state, and local levels. The U.S. case of the public investment process (or positive theory for United States public investment) is described and compared with the normative theory outlined in Chapter 1 to understand the deviation between the positive and normative theories. This chapter presents an analysis of four main components of the USA capital budgeting system including (1) long-term public capital planning, (2) annual public budgeting and financing, (3) project execution, and (4) public infrastructure evaluation. In addition, this chapter shows public infrastructure needs and financing issues in the United States.

Thai Public Capital Budget and Management Process

This chapter describes the public capital budgeting process in Thailand. Public infrastructure is very centralized; local governments do not play a large role in public infrastructure investment. The country's long-term physical planning is fragmented and lacks an effective long-term fiscal planning. The budget process is dominated by senior civil servants in the Bureau of the Budget, the Ministry of Finance, Bank of Thailand, and the National Economic and Social Development Board. Expensive projects financed by long-term debt bypass the budget process, and as a result, a comprehensive list of annually approved projects is unavailable to the public. This leads to public investment being driven almost entirely by debt capacity. Because of these factors, Thai governments have invested too little in public infrastructure, and the infrastructure investment is uneven across sectors.

Infrastructure Development in Burkina Faso

In Burkina Faso, the public capital management and budgeting framework is the MTEF. The budgeting method is the PBB. While Burkina has a budgeting framework and method, it is not clear how effectively they work when it comes to capital budgeting for infrastructure development, unlike developed countries where the framework and method are completely developed and clearly laid out. It is important to understand how Burkina integrates components of a normative framework such as long-term public capital planning, capital budgeting and financial management, centralized execution and project management, and infrastructure maintenance. The chapter focuses on providing a comparison of capital budgeting in Burkina and the normative framework. Exploring the literature and government documents, the authors show that Burkina theoretically addresses some of the elements of the normative components while practically, the country's use of most elements is weak and non-existent. The unique factors that inhibit the normative framework are highlighted and ten recommendations are provided.

Public Capital Budgeting and Management Process in Russia

This chapter provides a case study from Russia regarding public capital budgeting and management at the federal, state, and local levels. This chapter presents an analysis of four main components of Russian capital budgeting system including (1) long-term public capital planning, (2) annual public budgeting and financing, (3) project execution, and (4) public infrastructure evaluation. This research explains the general challenges of capital budgeting process after the several decades of financial and budget reforms. This chapter presents the structure and classification of the capital budget as well as recent trends in capital expenditure levels in Russia. The authors review the capital resource allocations across sectors based on investment needs and national priorities in Russia. The chapter explains public investment management processes and presents recommendations to improve the efficiency of public capital budgeting in Russia.