Title: Determinants of the budgetary transparency of public finance in Thailand's educational sector

Authors: Prakaydao Krissadee; Pairote Pathranarakul

Addresses: Thai-Nichi International College, Thai-Nichi Institute of Technology, Bangkok, 10250, Thailand ' Graduate School of Public Administration, National Institute of Development Administration Bangkok, 10240, Thailand

Abstract: Public spending on education in Thailand has been beset by a string of corruption charges. This paper examines determinants of budget transparency in public finance in Thailand's education sector, with a focus on four areas specified in the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) fiscal code. Questionnaire data were gathered from officials of the Thai Ministry of Education working on budgeting processes. Results showed that transparency is established through 10 key determinants: efficient use of technology, timely reporting, early commencement of the budgeting process, democratic decision making in budget allocation, objective review of budget performance, quality of revenue resource management, effective anticorruption measures, effective stakeholder engagement in the budgeting process, quality of governance, and accountability. Fiscal transparency in Thailand is below average compared to other nations, though progress has been made on fiscal reporting and fiscal forecasting and management. There are significant differences of the budget transparency determinants among pillars.

Keywords: budgetary/fiscal transparency; budgeting process; public finance; determinants; transparency dimensions; governance.

DOI: 10.1504/JGBA.2022.127207

Journal for Global Business Advancement, 2022 Vol.15 No.1, pp.18 - 38

Published online: 28 Nov 2022 *