Adetef - Public experts in economics & finance

The direction générale des finances publiques (DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) ) came into existence in April 2008 from the merging of the direction générale des impôts (the Tax Office) and the direction générale de la comptabilité publique (Directorate General of Public Accounting), an operation on an unprecedented scale. Grouped together under a single directorate, at a central level and across the whole territory, are 5,000 services and 125,000 employees.

The different missions of the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) place it at the centre of French financial public life, both at national and local levels. These missions relate to both taxation and public management. They depend on the unified management of support functions such as human resources, management control, budget and information systems.

The job of public management concerns the State and the Local Authorities.

• For the State, the missions of the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) focus on the control and payment of expenditure as well as the keeping, production and valuation of accounts.
• For the local authorities and public bodies, the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) collects revenue, pays expenditure, keeps the accounts and produces the financial accounts.
• The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) 's accountants coordinate and are alone authorised to handle public funds. As such, they also manage the deposits of funds of bodies and businesses engaged in general interest missions.
• The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) takes charge of missions of evaluation and national management and ensures the implementation of the State's buildings policy.
• Finally, the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) participates in the economic activity of the State by way of its financial expertise and advisory services.
  
For taxation and land matters, the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) prepares and clarifies the legislation and regulations.
• It deals with the declarations of businesses and individuals, calculates and collects taxes from businesses and individuals (State taxes and local taxes) and implements, if required, the procedures necessary for collection. It collects local taxes on behalf of local authorities and returns the product to them.
• The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) monitors compliance with tax obligations and fights against fraud.
• It deals with contentious and non-contentious claims, with regard to assessment and collection.
  As part of its land-related missions, it assesses land tax, prepares cadastral data and fulfils land registration and recording formalities.
For more information, see the section on Taxation

The Mission for International Cooperation (centres for taxation and public management) leads the strategy and activities for bilateral and multilateral cooperation with the foreign administrative counterparts in charge of managing public finances. The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) also maintains close relations with international bodies such as the AIST, CIAT (The Inter-American Center of Tax Administrations (CIAT) supports the efforts of national governments by promoting the institutional strengthening of tax administrations ...) , CREDAF (Conference and Study Center for Tax Administration Managers. The CREDAF gathers 29 French-speaking countries. It aims at promoting dialogue between Tax Administration ...) , the IMF (International Monetary Fund) , the World Bank, the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (in French see OCDE)) , the European Union….

General directions of international cooperation of the DGFiP - public management

The DGFIP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) - public management mainly comes into play in the following topics:

• State bookkeeping and the production of financial statements

Since the implementation of the accounting reform in 2006, the French State maintains its accounts based on International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS (International Public Sector Accounting Standards) ) and the accounts of the State are subject to certification by an external auditor (la Cour des Comptes, "the Court of Audit"). France is thus one of the few countries that have implemented these structuring budgetary and accounting reforms and the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) is in a position to offer an example of an administration that has managed to conduct an in-depth accounting and budgetary reform.

The offer of French cooperation on this theme has been particularly effective in North Africa (in Morocco, and on a tendering procedure in Algeria) and in the rest of Africa (backing of UEMOA and CEMAC budgetary and accounting guidelines, a bid won in 2010 in the Republic of Congo for European Union funding). The experience of the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) in conducting this type of reform is also monitored by developed countries (Greece, Italy, Japan...), large emerging countries (Russia, China, Vietnam...) and developing ones (Cambodia).

• Monitoring and control of State expenditure

In the context of the Organic Law on Finance Acts (LOLF (French Constitutional bylaw on budget acts) ), the State budget is submitted, voted on and implemented by public policies or missions that group programmes together. It focuses on performance projects that allow the budgetary choices of the State to be better appreciated. This development has significantly altered the rules of control and expenditure.

Several partner countries, including China, Lebanon, Morocco and in Africa, also want to change the rules for implementing the budget and seek the expertise of the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) on these subjects. 

• Internal audit and control

The State departments have developed a comprehensive system of risk management aiming at improving the efficiency and reliability of accounting and finance procedures. The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) has been revising its procedures for internal audit and control for some years.

This experience is recognised internationally: nearly twenty twinnings under European funding were achieved between the years 2000 and 2010 with 11 new member states or candidate countries as part of the upgrade of procedures in relation to the EU acquis. In 2010, a bid for World Bank funding was awarded to Cameroon.

Bilateral activities are conducted regularly on these topics, for example in Vietnam, Russia, Palestine, Ukraine and Senegal. The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) has also organised seminars on these topics with European countries, particularly in the context of the French Presidency of the European Union in 2008.

• Financial management of local authorities

The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) is a key partner for local authorities and local public institutions and strengthens its financial advisory role. As an accountant of the State and local authorities, the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) plays a key role in the decentralisation process. In 2010, many countries wanted to hold discussions with the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) on the subject of financial management of local authorities in France: Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, Thailand, Turkey... Under the French presidency of the European Union in 2008, the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) organised a seminar on the financing of local authorities in which the 27 European countries participated.

• The Single Treasury Account and management of the treasury, payment means and banking activities

The accountant for the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) is, within the French organisation of public finances, the sole authority to hold cash for public sector players (the State, local authorities, public institutions). The widely developed single treasury account system characterises the management style of French public finances and ensures centralised and active management of the treasury. With regard to depositors, the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) offers bank-type account management of the highest standard. It implements, for the State as well as for the depositors, modern means of payment in terms of both expenditure and income. Because of its experience, the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) is widely sought on this subject, in the past by Russia, Uzbekistan and Romania, and more recently by Lebanon, Palestine, Laos and Mauritania. 
• The management of the housing stock of the State
The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) is in charge of the evaluation of housing stock and the implementation of the State buildings policy. The innovative approach led in this context, the tools used and the link with the accounting reform increasingly of interest to foreign governments. Thus, exchanges have occurred and continue for some, conducted with countries such as Turkey, Mauritania, Namibia, Morocco, Gabon and Lebanon concerning the State buildings policy, the national management and the accounting for fixed asset.

The accounting and budgetary information systems.The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) is involved in all phases of the Chorus project, an application shared by all financial actors of the central and decentralised State offices: managers, financial controllers, accountants, authorising officers. The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) has also implemented an IT application, Helios, for accounting and financial management of local authorities and local public institutions constructed according to current IT standardsThis experience in the development and leadership of a major IT project interests our partners wishing to engage in an IT project. For example, Vietnam has sought the support of the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) during the different development stages of its planned budgetary and accounting information system for the Treasury (TABMIS). Similarly, experts from the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) have evaluated, with authorising officers and accountants, the application of integrated management of expenditure implemented in Morocco. The support of the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) to our partner countries is also evident in assistance and technical training. For example, specific training was provided in 2009 and 2010 for the benefit of 4 countries (Ivory Coast, Benin, Gabon, Senegal) using the ASTER software by supporting the transfer of the software sources.

• Training for careers in public management

  • Highly experienced training schools for careers in public management play an essential long-term role in international cooperation activities. Each year, the "Treasury" of the l'Ecole Nationale des Finances Publiques (National School of Public Finance) welcomes around twenty interns from different countries who follow the training course for inspectors over the course of a year. A catalogue of shorter training (around 2 weeks) is also offered each year to the officials of foreign partner governments on current topics (in 2001: budgetary and accounting reforms, internal control and audit, international accounting standards for the public sector).The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) also provides support to projects creating training facilities adapted to careers in public management. It provides, in this context, a service of instructional design. This applies, for example, in Algeria (proposed creation of the Ecole Nationale du Trésor et de la Comptabilité (National School of the Treasury and Accounting)) or in Vietnam (proposed creation of the Ecole du Trésor vietnamien (School of the Vietnamese Treasury)).
  • Organisation of Treasury services, steering and management control
  The French government has undertaken, with the LOLF (French Constitutional bylaw on budget acts) , an approach to management and steering based on performance. The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) is a pioneer in this field and has set up steering structures and management control to track the activity and performance of services. The network steering of large administrations is an increasingly frequent topic of our cooperation: Chile, Ukraine, Vietnam and Russia via annual seminars bringing together the Russian taxation and Treasury bodies. A bid was also led in Cameroon for World Bank funding.
  • The organisation of international networks
    •  Every two years, the Directors of the Treasury and of Public Accounting from around forty countries meet for the international conference of French-language treasury service. The 12th edition was held in 2008 in Bamako (Mali) on the topic of "the role of the Public Treasury in the process of decentralisation" and the 13th in 2010 in Douala on the topics of "modernising the control of the execution of the State Budget" and the "financing of the Treasury on the financial markets".
      
    • The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs regularly seek experts from the DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) for missions in Africa and Asia. The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) also provides support to these countries through the presence of resident technical assistants, who work with the directors of the Treasury and of Public Accounting or sometimes the Minister of Finance.
    • La DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) serves as the secretariat of l’Association Internationale des Services du Trésor (AIST). The AIST brings together around thirty countries with very different horizons (Europe, Asia, Africa, Middle East) and organises an annual seminar for reflection and exchange of experiences and best practices on current topics common to these jurisdictions: in 2008, in Washington on "financial and accounting information systems of States", in 2009 in Paris on "the accounting reform of States and the new role of public accountants", and in 2010 in Ljubljana on "the quality of public accounts". In 2009, the AIST and CREDAF (Conference and Study Center for Tax Administration Managers. The CREDAF gathers 29 French-speaking countries. It aims at promoting dialogue between Tax Administration ...) jointly organised a seminar in Morocco on the theme of financing local authorities in Africa.
    • The DGFiP (General Directorate for Public Finance (Ministry for the Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform)) also wants to create, between the equivalent administrative organs of States of the European Union, labour relations and reflection on common themes, for example, on issues of internal audit (Paris 2007 conference) or internal control (Paris 2008).