Fiscal transparency is always important as an aid to fiscal policy and good budgeting but has becomes critical during the COVID-19 pandemic because of high levels of public spending and debt, to avoid misuse of scarce public funds, and to enhance accountability.
The IMF s Fiscal Affairs Department (FAD), in collaboration with the International Budget Partnership (IBP) and with the financial support of the European Union (EU), organized a second edition of the Regional Seminar on Fiscal Transparency in Francophone Africa[5] on November 30 through December 8, 2020. The aim of the seminar was to help these countries strengthen their fiscal transparency practices through peer-to-peer learning and sharing of tools and good practices. It gathered various stakeholders (e.g., ministries of finance, parliamentary finance commissions, supreme audit institutions (SAIs), civil society organizations (CSOs), and donors) from 16 countries,[6] with a special focus on fiscal policy responses to the