13. pants

We will further raise the

effectiveness and efficiency of our public sector. To this end,

in July 2001 the Cabinet of Ministers adopted the Public

Administration Reform Strategy, 2001-2006, which provides a

set of development goals and guidelines for modernizing the

public sector and which will help us to better coordinate

individual reform initiatives. We have completed, ahead of

schedule and based on a newly derived methodology, a

comprehensive public administration review in the Secretariat for

Regional Development, and the findings of this pilot review are

helping us better coordinate our activities in this area. We will

build on this pilot review by completing reviews for at least two

more policy areas in time for the conclusions to be available

during the 2003 budget process. We will determine the policy

areas to be reviewed by end-December 2001 and submit the

completed reviews to the Cabinet of Ministers by July 2002. The

development of regulations for the phased implementation of a new

civil service pay scale has moved more gradually than initially

expected, because the tight fiscal situation limits the available

options. We intend to adopt the regulations by end-December 2001

and to begin implementation of the new pay scale some time after

mid-2002. The re-prioritization of spending is critical to

meeting our medium-term fiscal objectives, and we will continue

to implement the overall framework for medium-term budget

planning approved by the Cabinet of Ministers in April 2001.

Exchange Rate, Monetary, and

Financial Sector Policies