About BTMS BTMS Backgrounder
Brief History of the Project
The Public Financial Management (PFM) Reform Roadmap
The issuance of the Executive Order No. 55 in September 2011 and the adoption of the PFM Reform Roadmap (2011-2015) signalled the Government's commitment to take on the challenge of improving public services, increasing public integrity and accountability, and managing resources more effectively and efficiently. A strategic partnership began between four oversight agencies – the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), the Commission on Audit (COA), the Department of Finance (DOF) and the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) – to lead the PFM reforms through the inter-agency PFM Committee. Implementation of a major integrated system has been central to the reforms since their genesis. The Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) was initially defined as the technology centerpiece of the reforms in the establishment of the PFM Committee under Executive Order No. 55.
Other relevant reforms initially planned in the PFM Reform Roadmap are:
• Budget Reporting and Performance Standards project: design and implementation of a unified and standardized Chart of Accounts and Budget Classifications through the Unified Accounts Code Structure (UACS) and the adoption of Performance Informed Budget (PIB);
• Improvement of Treasury and Cash Management Operations project: design and implementation of a Treasury Single Account (TSA);
• Accounting and Auditing Reforms project: compliance with international standards for accounting and auditing, including the Philippine Public Sector Accounting Standards (PPSAS);
• Contingent Liability Management project: creation of a framework for monitoring and management of contingent liabilities of the Government; and
• Capacity Building project: design of a PFM Competency Model and implementation of the PFM Certification Program.
The reforms above have been fully implemented or are in an advanced implementation stage. For more information of the PFM Reform Roadmap and status of its reforms, visit www.pfm.gov.ph
GIFMIS
The first step towards the implementation of a Financial Management Information System (FMIS) for the Government of the Philippines (GoP) was the preparation of a Conceptual Design for GIFMIS.
The preparation of the Conceptual Design involved the following activities:
• comprehensive analysis of existing systems, processes, and legal and regulatory framework;
• definition of scope, coverage and functionality;
• recommendations on business process re-engineering;
• general system requirements; and
• procurement and implementation approach.
The GIFMIS Conceptual Design was adopted by the PFM Committee in 2013.
Subsequently, the Terms of Reference, Functional Requirements Specifications, Technical Requirements Specifications and Bidding Documents for the procurement of GIFMIS were also prepared. However, the Government decided not to proceed with the procurement of GIFMIS, given the concerns on the scale and the limited timeframe left to effectively roll-out GIFMIS to all National Government Agencies (NGAs).
BTMS and the Updated PFM Reform Roadmap
To ensure the implementation of an FMIS for GoP while supporting its new strategy, it was decided to proceed with the new Budget and Treasury Management System (BTMS). The BTMS is a scaled down FMIS, virtually identical to GIFMIS, and is compliant with the PFM Reform Roadmap and the GIFMIS Conceptual Design. It will be piloted to DBM and BTr only as oversight and spending agencies, instead of rolling out to all NGAs. The BTMS maintains the most important and critical components of GIFMIS, it covers the scope and functionality of a Core Treasury System, and can evolve into a broader Integrated FMIS in the future. The BTMS was endorsed and adopted by the PFM Committee and was annexed to the Updated PFM Reform Roadmap (2015-2016).
BTMS and the Future
The BTMS was successfully procured and the project was awarded in November 2015 to the Joint-Venture of Innove Communications, Inc. and FreeBalance, Inc. The BTMS project implementation officially started in December 2015. After the successful BTMS pilot at DBM and BTr, the same functional processes will be rolled out to all remaining NGAs. The relevant functional processes, system modules and external interfaces originally planned for GIFMIS and not present in BTMS can be contracted. Once implemented, BTMS will have the same coverage, scope and functionality as originally planned for GIFMIS.
DBM Circullar letter No. 2019-4
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