Date: October 21 - 23, 2010.

More than 300 government officials, parliamentarians, and academics gathered in Sivas, Turkey, at an international symposium, "The Role of the Parliaments in Fiscal Policy." The event was jointly organized by Turkey's Ministry of Finance, the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, Cumhuriyet University, and the Ankara office of the World Bank.

International Symposium on Fiscal Policy and the Role of ParliamentsWith the participation of the Deputy Speaker of the Grand National Assembly, Nevzat Pakdilli, and the Head of the Parliamentary Plan and Budget Committee, Mustafa Açıkalın, national and international experts shared experience and discussed the role of parliaments in overseeing and executing fiscal policy.

In his opening remarks, Ulrich Zachau, World Bank Country Director for Turkey, noted that fiscal policies lie at the heart of a government's responsibilities to citizens. "Today, an ever-increasing number of countries are assigning more active roles to legislatures in the budget process, and it is very pleasing to see that the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, through the Plan and Budget Committee, has taken several steps to improve its own technical capacity. We believe these improvements will have a direct impact on budget discussions," he said.

International experience was reflected with the participation of speakers from the World Bank, the OECD, and academics in different sessions. In the first session, Ahmadou Moustapha Ndiaye, ECA's Regional Manager in charge of Financial Management, stressed the importance of Parliaments' oversight functions on budget processes: "The development, deliberation, and passage of a budget with both legislative and executive participation represent one of the vital checks and balances of democracy."

The symposium also shed light on new approaches to fiscal policy around the globe. Mark Thomas, Lead Economist of the World Bank in Turkey, focused on five principles of modern fiscal management: Sustainability, Quality, Predictability, Counter-Cyclicality and Scrutiny. He stated that: "By international standards Turkey is applying these principles of modern fiscal management and doing well. While bringing Turkey to the next level, the Parliament can play a key role, as in other countries, by passing complementary legislative reforms such as a Fiscal Rule Law, the TCA Law, strengthening public investment appraisal and selection, and tax reform."

International Symposium on Fiscal Policy and the Role of ParliamentsThe Deputy Undersecretary of the Turkish State Planning Organization, Erhan Uslu, speaking on the economic and social impacts of fiscal policies in Turkey, drew attention to the importance of having an independent and objective budget unit within the Turkish Parliament.

Keum-Chol Park, from the Budgeting and Public Expenditures Division of the OECD, described international experience in this area: "In many countries today, legislatures need help in understanding complex budget issues and processes. In 16 of 38 OECD countries there is a specialized unit with the capacity to conduct such analysis."

Burhanettin Aktaş, Deputy Undersecretary of the Turkish Treasury, stressed that at the global level, the G-20 is discussing legislative framework issues relating to strengthening fiscal policy while at the same time fostering growth.

International Symposium on Fiscal Policy and the Role of ParliamentsThe Report of the Civil Society Platform on Public Expenditure Monitoring, prepared by 45 Turkish NGOs, was presented by Nurhan Yentürk of Bilgi University. The report, which has been sent to parliamentarians in the form of a letter, evaluates Turkey's public expenditures on social protection, youth, children, the disabled, and defense. The recommendations gave a different perspective on this technical subject.

Discussions following all sessions were lively and provided an open environment where government officials, representatives of international organizations, and academics had a chance to contribute. Participants concluded that there is a lot to be learned from other countries, while adaptation to local conditions is also critical for high-quality fiscal policy design and execution.