On September 30, the World Bank Board of Executive Directors approved a USD21 million loan for the Third Public Sector Modernization Project (PSMP III) for Armenia.

This project will further assist the Government of Armenia in its on-going efforts to improve quality of the public financial reporting and to improve access to selected enhanced e-government services, the WB Armenia office reports.

“Strengthening governance through improved public service delivery is among the priorities for Bank support,” said Laura E. Bailey, World Bank Country Manager for Armenia.

“I will particularly highlight the proposed Citizen-Government Interface for Accountability under the second project component. This will support the establishment of feedback mechanisms to facilitate citizen and business access to government services, address grievances, and monitor client satisfaction”, she added.

PSMP III supports three main components: (i) Public Financial Management Information Systems; (ii) e-Governance Solutions for Improved Service Delivery; and (iii) Capacity Building and Small Capacity Building Interventions.

The first component will assist the Government to improve the efficiency, effectiveness and comprehensiveness of its financial management and accounting through the development of a Government Financial Management Information System (GFMIS). The proposed GFMIS modules will include improvement, among others, in budget planning, budget execution, public procurement, debt management, accounting, budget reporting, and the general ledger.

The second component will support the implementation of select priorities as identified in Armenia’s e-Governance Strategy. Key elements will include: development of the enabling environment by strengthening policy, regulatory frameworks and building institutions and capacity within the government to undertake introduction of e-governance platforms, and introduction of foundational platforms and infrastructure necessary for government-wide e-services.

The third component seeks to strengthen the capacity of the Civil Service Council and Armenian Academy of Public Administration to modernize the training system for public servants and raise the quality of trainings.