A US State Department report on Libya’s fiscal transparency for 2021 noted that the draft budget disclosed only limited information on debt obligations, including that of state-owned enterprises.
The report stated that budget documents available to the public were largely incomplete, lacking sufficient detail, and audit reports of large state-owned enterprises, such as the National Oil Corporation, were not publicly available, even though the corporation was independently engaged in efforts to strengthen Transparency by turning its operations into numbers and improving the corporate governance structure.
The report pointed out that military and intelligence budgets are subject to limited civilian oversight, and Libya has not yet fully used internationally accepted accounting principles, noting that the Libyan Investment Authority does not disclose the source of its funding or its general approach to withdrawals, and the Audit Bureau is not independent according to the standards. and has not submitted a public report within a reasonable time after reviewing some of the government’s accounts.
The report found that financial transparency in Libya could be improved by publishing complete and reliable budget documents within a reasonable time, disclosing in budget documents information on debt obligations, including state-owned corporate debt and other financial data, and establishing a supreme oversight body that meets international standards. independence, subjecting military and intelligence budgets to greater civilian oversight, and full adoption of internationally accepted accounting principles.
One of the things that improves financial transparency in Libya, according to the American report, is to make the Audit Bureau’s reports on the budget of the government and state-owned companies available to the public within a reasonable time; Ensuring that the sovereign wealth fund discloses its source of funding or its general approach to withdrawal.
