Dubai Customs completed implementing the Performance Based Budgeting Methodology by 100% since beginning of the current year, being by that the first government department in Dubai to effectively implement the methodology.
This came after three years of gradual execution kick off for the purposes of achieving corporate and strategic objectives through utmost usage of financial and human resources in a highly effective and efficient manner and in guidance and following up of H.E. Ahmed Butti Ahmed, Executive Chairman of Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation, Dubai Customs Director General.
In the presence of H.E. Ahmed Humaid Al Tayer, Governor of Dubai International Financial Centre and H.E. Abdulla Al Shibani, General-Secretary of the Executive Council in Dubai, Dubai Customs stressed during its participation in the Effective Management of Financial Resources Seminar recently organized by DEGP at Dubai Police Officer Club in Al Qarhoud its commitment to Dubai Government suggestion towards the best allocation of the budget through setting out a framework for the performance based budget and a transitional plan for shifting from the traditional budgeting into the performance based budgeting. This effort comes as part of the Department’s realization of the significance of keeping pace with the most advanced technologies and the best international practices which contributes to 25% of the government revenue and covers its expenses from its revenues by over 740%.
The gradual expansion method of the performance based budgeting execution process at Dubai Customs was adopted for reasons relating to adopting the system and its effect on a number of different administrative systems in addition to giving the chance to learn from the experience and amending the system whenever upgraded as well as controlling the system with regards to the unintended factors and finally granting further time to support the modernization and development operations.
Mr. Khalil Ebraheem Andraos, Manager of Financial Affairs Department at Dubai Customs and Abdul Aziz Al Mulla, Senior Manager of Financial Projects and General Accounts demonstrated during the seminar the implementation of the performance based budgeting methodology at Dubai Customs and its definition being an integrative part of the general budget of the government in terms of its divisions into the different expenditure votes of current expenses, salaries and investment and humane projects. The projects shall be translated into technical performance units and assessed with the project’s estimates and the accomplishments made in a way serving the objectives and the strategic plan set by Dubai Customs.
Mr. Andraos tackled the most important basic requirements for the implementation of the performance based budgeting. These include leadership serious desire to implement the methodology and tracking the application thereof, providing results, ability to divide the budget approved by the Finance department of Dubai Government into an number of functions, programmes and activities and aligning them with the strategic objectives passing through KPIs and their measurement, creating a robust accounting and financial system that can be developed to cater the operational and Financial requirement, laying down the performance indicators and measurements for the possible project performance measurement and assessing the deliverables thereof in order to utilize such measurement results for new projects with the aim of better and most efficient deliverables and finally creating the qualified technical cadres together with the possibility of developing their competency and efficiency through a series of training courses covering all specializations.
Dubai Customs Electronic Procurement System Project was presented as a case study with respect to the implementation of the performance based budgeting in Dubai Customs. The project is an improvement initiative aiming at the optimum utilization of the financial and administrative resources, implementing the automation of a full-fledged procurement cycle as from the purchase order to the invoices settlement based on an integrated technological structure and securing the close link between the procurement and the financial resources management in order to improve compliance with the budget and increase employees competency through automation and minimizing the requirement for reviews.
The paper was concluded by presenting the benefit earned by Customs from the performance based budgeting. Programmes and projects implementation priorities were identified subject to the performance proceed on investment in such a way that would allow delivering projects in accordance with all BSC perspectives and not the tangible financial proceeds including the establishment of goals justifying the distribution of money and the cost of achieving the strategic objectives together with introducing a framework for measuring projects and operations performance and providing comprehensive analytical data on the organizational units` performance towards their projects and operations.