About the Project: Improvement of performance-based management (VORT)


In 2009-2012, the Office of the Prime Minister) carried out a project aimed at implementing performance-based management, following the experience of other countries. The Project has contributed to the enhancement of performance of the Government and subordinate institutions by helping to improve performance monitoring and accountability, functional analysis, and programme evaluation, as well as decision impact assessment. The project was implemented in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Lithuania and financed by the European Social Fund. The total value of the Projects: LTL 7.9 mln.

VORT phases

1. Improvement of the system of Government performance monitoring:
♦ Development of a monitoring concept of strategic action plan implementation results and of the plan of its implementation;
♦ Improvement of the performance measures necessary for result monitoring (development of a methodology of performance measures, and organisation of training);
♦ Development of general information monitoring system and its introduction at the Ministry of Finance.

2. Improvement of the functional analysis and of assessment of budget programmes of institutions accountable to the Government:
♦ Development of a methodology for the functional analysis and the assessment of budget programmes of institutions accountable to the Government;
♦ Testing of the methodology for the functional analysis and the assessment of budget programmes of institutions accountable to the Government in three ministries, and organisation of training.

3. Improvement of the system of draft decision impact assessment:
♦ Supplementation of a methodology for decision impact assessment, and development of a methodology for the final assessment;
♦ Carrying out of extended impact assessments through the testing of the methodologies;
♦ Designing of a training programme on the application of the impact assessment methods and methodologies, and organisation of training.


IMPROVEMENT OF MONITORING SYSTEM

During the first phase of the project in 2011, the Ministry of Finance introduced the Monitoring Information System (SIS), aimed to ensure a regular performance monitoring of government-accountable institutions, by enabling automatic delivery of performance data, cross-section analysis, and at any time viewing institutional performance developments via a single access point. From 2012, the institutions will report to the Government on SIS on quarterly basis, which will allow the analysts from the Prime Minister's Office and other relevant institutions to obtain quick access to performance information and subsequently report to their superiors and the Government. This will ensure timely information to decision-makers. Among other things, this system will help coordinate more effectively inter-institutional activities: planning, implementation and reporting. This is especially true in planning and reporting for the implementation of Government priorities. It is important to note that much of the information necessary for the analysis as well as for the professionals themselves has been transferred to the electronic space, to phase out the paper. The performance indicators used in strategic planning documents have been worked out and implemented together with experts, enabling the quality of performance information, while the training has helped to strengthen the analytical capacities of civil servants.

EVALUATION OF OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY AND EFFECTIVENESS

During the second phase of the VORT, new functional review and programme evaluation systems have been devised. They will provide for reasoned (analysis and evidence-based) decisions in response to emerging challenges: declining financial and human resources, new IT solutions, and new goals and objectives faced by the authorities.
So far, Lithuania has not regulated functional review, there have been no responsible authorities to coordinate the functional review processes. The newly created methods and its application guidelines provide for functional review processes and techniques. This method, following the governmental review of institutional functions, will eliminate existing duplication of institutional functions, streamline the functions, and provide for rational distribution of costs, cost saving, increase institutional efficiency and effectiveness. Ministry of Interior has been tasked with functional review process coordination.
Consistent evaluations carried out in line with the newly developed methodology for the evaluation of budget programmes will encourage a continuous improvement of the programmes, thus increasing institutional efficiency and effectiveness, responsibility and accountability. The evaluation of programmes will raise such questions as: How to achieve better efficiency in performance? How to achieve better results? Where to shift the focus towards improvement? The newly created programme evaluation system will encourage interest not only in absolute results, but it will also encourage observing the changing needs of the society and thinking how to improve the performance. Thus, the civil servants will be able to provide to decision-makers reliable and evidence-based information. The Ministry of Finance has been appointed as a body responsible for coordination of the evaluation programme.

BETTER REGULATION

The third phase of the project focused on the improvement of the decision impact assessment system. Although the proposal impact assessment has been mandatory since 2003, in many cases it remained very formalistic, one of the reasons being the abundance of draft legislation, which has led to declining quality. To achieve high-quality impact assessment in accordance with the principle of proportionality, it was foreseen to focus only on priority decisions (i.e. most important, complex and usually most expensive ones). To compare positive and negative effects of alternative decisions cost-benefit analysis will be carried out. Following the quality evaluation, impact assessment will be presented to the Government, which will be able to decide at an early stage about the necessity of one or another legal regulation, its benefits and costs of implementation, and administrative burden on businesses and the state budget.

Notable, that until now there has been no legal regulation of final impact assessment of decisions under implementation. Certain legal acts have been subject to monitoring while under implementation, leaving their final outcomes unattended. The VORT has developed methodological instruments helping to assess positive and negative decision impact for residents, businesses and other organizations. Assessment results will be used by the Government as it takes evidence-based decisions on the improvement of regulations: data on the actual effects of policy measures and their costs will help select better measures towards the achievement of the targets, as well as implement them more effectively. Impact assessment findings will be used in reporting to the public on the outcomes of the decisions taken.

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VORT activities have been implemented with due regard to the on-going public administration reforms and government priorities. The proposed solutions enable the use of the tools devised in the framework of the VORT project in the ever-changing process of decision and policy making. They will contribute to:
- Reduction of the administrative burden on businesses, citizens and public institutions;
- Higher efficiency and effectiveness of public institutions;
- Better management of change and increased civil servants‘ responsibility for the outcomes.