DILI, 18 may 2023, (TATOLI)- Ministry of Finance and Banco Nacional Ultramarino (BNU) bank signed an agreement to provide credit cards dhesion contracts to Cr89 government entities for emergencies needed during official overseas traveling.
Minister of Finance, Rui Gomes said the Agreement signed today with BNU Bank, is another step in the incorporation of new technologies in public financial management, joining the free balance system and the R-Timor system.
“We agree to help government executive members who will travel overseas. The credit card can be used for any emergency paid who travels for their job,’’ Minister of Finance, Rui Gomes s told Tatoli Agency in the Minister of Finance office, Ai Tarak, Wednesday.
He added that this credit card will help the government and its members automatically pay for the hotel, transportation, meals, any online application, and other necessities, which is responding to emergency travel.
“Taking out credit cards is yet another measure by this Government that forms part of the reform of public finances which, over the last three years, has aimed to improve our financial system and bring it up to the level of the best international practices. Examples of this are the approval of the Framework Law for the General State Budget and public financial management, the Procurement Regime and public contracts, budgeting by programs and new budget classifiers, and the decentralization of payment functions initiated in January of this year,”
This agreement will allow, from now on, services and entities of the Administrative Public Sector to contract Visa credit cards with BNU.
As provided for in the Decree-Law for budget execution, services, and entities must contract the issuance of a debit and credit bank card with access to a widely accepted payment network in Timor-Leste and the rest of the world, to make payments related to the acquisition of goods and services that are only available through the Internet, or whose acquisition by this means is more advantageous for the State, as well as for payment of costs incurred in official trips abroad.
The contracting of credit cards by public services and entities has long been an objective of the Ministry of Finance and has been recommended by the Chamber of Accounts and by the National Parliament so that it is possible to digitize all State payments and end the practice of making cash payments.
The use of credit cards, by electronically registering all payments, the date and place of operations, amounts, and beneficiaries, will substantially improve the transparency of payment operations and facilitate the accountability of those who misuse public funds.
The contracting of credit cards will place national public institutions at the level of their international counterparts in terms of good practices and will allow the General Directorate of the Treasury to have an electronic record of all payments made, effectively preventing fraud, theft, and corruption.
“Measures like these have led international organizations to improve their assessment of public finances in Timor-Leste, particularly in the field of transparency, with emphasis on the considerable improvement in our classification in the Open Budget Survey, as well as our recent membership of the Open Government Partnership,” he said.
All recognize public finance reform as one of the great successes of this Government and one that makes Timor-Leste a more prosperous, more resilient, and better-prepared country for the future.
“We hope that the step we are taking today is just the beginning of a technological revolution and that in the near future, the Public Administration Sector services and entities will be able to take a qualitative leap and adopt new technologies, such as online banking, electronic signatures or contactless payments, with a view to a more modern, more transparent and more responsible Public Administration,’’ He concluded
The government executive entities can be owned the credit card for the duration between 3 to five years. BNU bank will provide credit cards to the executive entities, for those who can be used the amount of $.3.000 to $.10.000.
Journalist: José Belarmino De Sá
Editor: Nelia Borges
