The Indonesian government says the reform and modernization of the country’s public financial management systems has taken a big step forward following the adoption of a comprehensive centralized database that tracks government spending in real time.
The Ministry of Finance said recently the real-time reporting and accounting launched in April 2015 by President Joko Widodo is helping the government manage the budget and improve accountability of all central government financial institutions.
The system, called SPAN or Sistem Perbendaharaan dan Anggaran Negara, is enabling the ministry to watch spending limits, deliver on commitments, and better prepare expenditure planning, it added.
“The main feature of SPAN is automation, which supports the audit trail to enhance transparency in the management of state finances and integration of several sub-modules for state financial management. With SPAN as a model, we’ll continue to improve on the management of budgeting, treasury, taxation, and customs and excise,” said Bambang Brodjonegoro, Minister of Finance for Indonesia.
SPAN is a vital component of a project called the Government Financial Management and Revenue Administration Project, supported by many donors, including the World Bank, the governments of Canada and Switzerland, and the European Union.
Rodrigo Chaves, World Bank Country Director for Indonesia, said, “By enabling the sharing of information, SPAN contributes towards making financial management systems more accountable. The next step is to use SPAN for improving policy planning and monitoring for more effective public spending.”
SPAN promotes further accountability, transparency of public finance management and allows a good and swift budget execution, leading to improved overall governance, said Yvonne Baumann, Ambassador of Switzerland to Indonesia.
“By enabling online real-time data capture at source, SPAN reduces the potential for human error and fraud. These real-time reports on government financial operations are also available to key stakeholders, including the Central Bank and line ministries,” she added.
SPAN is now being used by the Ministry of Finance at DG Budget and DG Treasury headquarters, including 182 Treasury services offices, and 33 Treasury Kanwil offices (Kanwils) all over Indonesia with more than 3,600 users, serving 24,000 spending units.
Photo: @sage_solar
