A talk by Dr. Phillip Krause: “From transactional to policy ministries of finance”
07 Feb 2025
TrustBridge will host a talk by Dr. Phillip Krause on 7 February 2025 from 4 – 5.30 p.m. at our offices in New Delhi.
Abstract:
What distinguishes finance ministries from one another? This is not a trivial question for governments amidst increasing demands for finance ministries to become involved in a wide range of urgent crises and long-term challenges. What variation in the function, form and inner workings of finance ministries might shape their ability to do so? There are two ideal types of finance ministries, transactional or policy ministries. At the turn of the 20th century, all finance ministries were transactional ministries, meaning that management attention and the bulk of their staff were committed to processing or overseeing transactional work. Over time, some ministries shifted to a policy focus. This involved greatly increasing policy staff, while automating, simplifying, and delegating transactional tasks. Such a transition can take decades and depends on having a credible budget and stable macroeconomic environment.
Its position on the transactions-policy continuum shapes how a finance ministry interacts with its environment and responds to new challenges. It needs to be properly understood when thinking about fiscal and budgetary policy.
The talk will be held in person at the TrustBridge offices, New Delhi. If you would like to attend the talk, please RSVP: [email protected]