Dr Philipp Krause gives this public talk titled ‘Finance ministries and development’. This video was recorded at the ANU Crawford School of Public Policy on 11 February 2014.

What makes a finance ministry capable at doing its job? Is it a strong legal mandate to run public finances as it sees fit? Is it a set of instruments that allow it to run public finance systems according to international best practices? Is it a group of well-trained, hardworking, dedicated people who keep the rest of the public sector as much in awe as in check?

Given how important they are for governments even in OECD countries, it is curious how little we know about them in the context of development. At the moment, they fall in between a focus on relatively disconnected policies on the one hand, and instruments or systems on the other. This seminar will try to draw on the small but growing literature on finance ministries as actors and draw lessons for the current practice of development.

Dr Philipp Krause leads the public finance team at ODI’s Centre for Aid and Public Expenditures. His research interests cover public administration, budgeting and fiscal governance, as well as monitoring and evaluation. Dr Krause has previously worked on public sector issues for the German Technical Cooperation and the World Bank, and has advised governments in Latin America, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. He has held visiting scholar positions at New York University, the German Development Institute and the University of Maryland; and is an executive education faculty member of the Harvard Kennedy School. Dr Krause holds an MA from the University of Potsdam and a PhD from the London School of Economics and Political Science. This seminar was presented by the Asia and the Pacific Policy Society at Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University.