After receiving training on the new financial management software provided by EWMI’s USAID-funded Separation of Powers Program (SPP), budget and financial staff from Serbia’s courts agreed that the new system will make it much easier for courts to develop accurate budgets.

SPP provided the training to help court staff adapt to the new automated budget planning and management information system, or BPMIS, that will soon automate the budget processes of the High Court Council (HCC) and Serbia’s courts. Training on the new software was conducted July 11-15 in Belgrade, Novi Sad and Nis, and included staff from 120 of Serbia’s 129 courts.

The judicial system’s budget sets the framework for court operations and the delivery of justice. BPMIS supports this framework by providing a web-based, integrated budget formulation system to assist the HCC and courts in meeting all of their budget responsibilities, including budget planning, management, realization, oversight, and advocacy. It allows courts to quickly and consistently provide budget information to the HCC. In turn, it provides the HCC with a modern tool to analyze, consolidate, and submit the judiciary’s overall budget to the Ministry of Finance.

Helping bring financial independence to the Serbia’s judiciary is one of the main tasks of the Separation of Powers Program. By installing and training court staff in BPMIS, Serbia’s courts will become more autonomous, efficient and effective.