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CONTRIBUTION OF CONEVAL TO THE OBJECTIVES OF THE NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN

 

In order to guarantee the effectiveness of the actions undertakes, Core Idea 5 “Effective democracy and responsible external policy” of the National Development Plan (Plan Nacional de Desarrollo, PND) 2007-2012 establishes that effective democracy must reduce the gap between citizens and their representatives through transparency and accountability mechanisms; it must encourage dialog and the formation of agreements between the different powers, the different levels of government, and between these and political organizations.​

Mexico must increase the effectiveness of its democracy so that the economic and social achievements translate into permanent improvements in the quality of life of citizens. Accordingly, the governing document establishes as tasks “to increase the fulfillment of basic needs in quantity and quality, measure the progress on aspects like education, health, housing, infrastructure and the reduction of poverty”, the purpose being to improve the effectiveness of governmental actions and compliance with the objectives and guiding principles of social and human development policy.

In order to improve the performance of public administration, the PND 2007-2012 establishes as Objective 4 of this Core Idea, “Improve the regulation, management, processes and results of Federal Public Administration to satisfy the needs of the citizens regarding the delivery of public goods and services.

The Strategies that will best contribute to improving efficiency and effectiveness, as well as accountability, are: “4.4. Adopt a results-based budget design model that facilitates accountability and generates incentives for Federal Public Administration to comply with its stated goals; and 4.5. Evaluate the performance of government programs and their impact on the population.

Strategy 4.4 sets out as a fundamental requirement of society the transparent, effective and efficient use of public funds, as well as guarantee that government priorities are achieved. To execute this action, the Federal Government has seen fit to adopt Results-Based Budgeting; one of its core principles is the evaluation of government programs as the start of a new type of public management aimed at results which structurally modifies and improves the planning, programming, approval and exercise of budgets. Results-Based Budgeting consists of several processes and instruments that allow the decisions involved in the budget to systematically incorporate considerations about results obtained in the application of public funds.

This is complemented by Strategy 4.5 which establishes that in order to allocate public funds under a Results-Based Budgeting approach, an objective, participative and transparent evaluation mechanism is required for all government programs and institutions that help guide budget allocations based on results and efficacy, as well as lift productivity and modernize specific processes. This Strategy will be based on a new system for evaluating performance using indicators in terms of coverage, efficiency, economic and social impact, quality and equality that allow federal government actions to be monitored.

Furthermore, Core Idea 3 “Equal Opportunities”, establishes as the outcome of social policy the achievement of human development and the wellbeing of all Mexicans through equal opportunities with the following guiding principles: focus resources on the programs that have proven themselves the most effective; use evaluation and follow-up systems that allow constant monitoring and improvement of programs, as well as promote the coordination of actions between Federal Government agencies and bodies, and the different levels of government.

Therefore, in the framework of Objective 1: Strategy 1.4 states “Significantly reduce the number of Mexicans living in poverty through public policies that no longer rely on a hand-out approach to help individuals acquire capacities and generate work opportunities”. Improve the planning, operation and evaluation processes of programs aimed at overcoming poverty, including the preparation of a unique register of beneficiaries.

Strategy 1.4, contrived as an instrument for overcoming the conditions of poverty in the population, puts systems into place within social policy to monitor programs at their different stages, including evaluation. It also sets out the design for a comprehensive information system that contains a unique register of beneficiaries for all social programs which allows the best actions to be focused on places, communities and families most in need of State action.

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