A municipality that plans strategically but budgets poorly, or budgets well without a strategy, ends up with the same problem: resources that do not match priorities. This course tackles both sides together, giving participants a working knowledge of how municipal budgets are built and executed, how performance-based budgeting works in a government setting, and how strategic planning ties spending decisions to long-term goals.

Much of what is covered applies to government budgeting at any level, not just municipalities, making the course useful well beyond a single administrative context. Participants leave able to plan a budget cycle, report on it accurately, and manage performance across their municipality's environment.

Course Objectives

• Apply the principles of setting and implementing a municipal budget.
• Plan the budget cycle and prepare municipal reporting.
• Support strategic planning and implementation within a municipality.
• Manage performance across the municipal environment.
• Manage municipal income and expenditure within a multi-year framework.
• Understand what performance budgeting is and how it is used.
• Select and apply the right performance indicators for water and sanitation services.

Who Should Attend

• Directors and mayors of municipalities.
• Members of municipal and local councils.
• Planning and monitoring committee staff within municipalities.
• Employees across municipal council administration.
• Anyone preparing to hold a position in a municipal council.

Module 1: Municipal Budget Fundamentals

• Principles of setting and implementing a municipal budget.
• Planning the budget cycle and preparing reporting.
• Managing municipal income and expenditure.

Module 2: Strategic Planning and Performance Management

• Strategic planning and implementation within the municipality.
• Managing performance across the municipal environment.
• Working within a multi-year financial framework.

Module 3: Understanding Performance Budgeting

• What performance budgeting is and how it is used.
• Key steps for building a performance budget.
• Guidance and illustrative examples of effective performance budgeting programs.

Module 4: Government Budgeting in Practice

• Overview of performance-based budgeting and management in government.
• Software products designed specifically for government budgeting.
• Applying general budgeting information to any government context.