Vitalis Nakrošis – IPBM Project Expert, Programme Leader of the Public Policy and Management Institute

I absolutely welcome the project IPBM. First, it is an integrated project that covers the different stages of strategic management (planning, monitoring, and assessment) and all institutions accountable to the Government. Second, this is a strategic project with its goals and results being in compliance with the priorities and main strategic documents of the present Government. Third, this is an innovative project as within its framework the practices of foreign countries are presented, various events are organised, and progressive results are created (e.g. an information system of the Government’s performance monitoring).
Although strategic planning was launched in Lithuania in 2000, there is a serious lack of performance-based management, while the monitoring information and other evidence are underused in implementing the Government's programme and allocating financial resources. In my view, the implementation of this project will result in the improvement of Government programme implementation, the efficiency of using State budget funds, the accountability to the Seimas and the general public, and will enable the Government to achieve better results and demonstrate them to the various groups of stakeholders. Without support from the ESF, implementation of the project IPBM to the planned extent and at the fixed terms as well as the achievement of the respective quality would not be possible.
I would relate this project to the best practice of projects on public administration improvement which should be disseminated at the national and the EU level. In my opinion, the coordinators of public administration reforms, for instance, the Office of the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of the Interior, have to initiate more similar projects that would bring benefits to the entire system of the central government.
______________________________________________________

Inga Tarakavičiūtė – Chief Public Auditor of the Strategic Planning and Analysis Division, Department of Audit Development, the National Audit Office of Lithuania

Despite the State’s progress in improving finance and strategic activity planning some areas still need continuous improvement. I will point out only several of the results to be achieved: clear links between State long-term strategic documents and institutional programmes; direct linkage of the planned and achieved results under these programmes with the budget appropriations used; monitoring of the implementation of the State’s long-term development priorities; quality assessment of institutional programmes by analysing their soundness as well as the results achieved, impact expected and benefit to the general public. I believe this project will provide a positive impulse for the improvement of the strategic planning system. Upon the project’s successful implementation the management of the State’s finance and property would become more based on performance and meet the needs of the society and the State. 
______________________________________________________

Paulius Skardžius – Director of the Ministry of the Interior Public Governance Department

I absolutely favourably evaluate the project IPBM as eventually that part of strategic planning which so far has been missing in the country is being developed, i.e. the monitoring and assessment of strategic plan implementation. Surely, explanatory information on the need and benefits of performance-based management has to be communicated to representatives from the public sector and the general public on a regular basis. I support this project and consider that the whole management system has to be purposefully oriented to this. Even though today we already have the major part of strategic planning components in Lithuania but, in my opinion, management is still more oriented to a process than a result. The project IPBM will undoubtedly contribute to the promotion of performance-based management because, as I have mentioned, there was a serious lack of strategic planning monitoring and, particularly, assessment.
______________________________________________________

Daiva Kamarauskienė – Director of the Ministry of Finance Budget Department

In my opinion, the project IPBM will make a great contribution to the implementation of the Government's activity priorities and create better conditions for the further consolidation of public finance and efficient use of resources. This will help ensure the integrity and inter-compatibility of the State’s strategic documents. Within the framework of the project a weak chain of strategic planning, related to the monitoring of strategic action plans and budget programmes of public institutions, the linking of their goals, objectives and performance measures with results as well as the assessment of funds allocated to public institutions and results achieved, will be reinforced. The designing of an information system of monitoring will create conditions for the joint monitoring of performance and accountability for the results achieved, as well as the implementation of the Government’s political principles. The project IPBM will certainly contribute to the improvement of performance-based management.
______________________________________________________