Analysis of the Civil Service Remuneration System Reform: the Accounting Chamber Joined Expert Discussion

On 30 June, Kyrylo Klymenko, Member of the Accounting Chamber, took part in an online discussion organised by the RRR4U (Resilience, Reconstruction and Relief for Ukraine) consortium. The event focused on the presentation of the latest issue of the Monitoring of the Implementation of the IMF Programme and EU Assistance under the Ukraine Facility, as well as an assessment of the progress of civil service reform.

Experts invited to the discussion included representatives of the Support for Improvement in Governance and Management (SIGMA) Programme, the Centre of Policy and Legal Reform, the Centre for Economic Strategy, the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting, the Institute of Analytics and Advocacy, and DiXi Group. The experts presented their assessments of Ukraine's fulfilment of commitments under the IMF's ‘structural benchmarks’ and the indicators of the Ukraine Facility plan.

In particular, during the discussion, Kyrylo Klymenko presented the Accounting Chamber's approach to auditing the reform of the remuneration system in public administration. According to him, the reform of civil servants' remuneration is the basis for implementing of all other reforms, as the motivation and professionalism of public officials directly affect the quality of decision-making..

‘Working in the public sector involves certain restrictions and additional responsibilities for citizens. Therefore, in order to attract the best candidates to positions in state bodies, it is essential to ensuresufficient financial motivation. During the audit, we analyse to what extent the new remuneration system contributes to achieving this goal,’ emphasised the member of the Accounting Chamber.

During the audit, a comparative analysis of the salaries paid to civil servants is carried out for two periods: 2023 — prior to the reform’s introduction, and 2024 — the first year of its implementation.

In preparation for the audit, the Accounting Chamber's auditors studied the best practices in civil service remuneration based on SIGMA materials, as well as the experience of the UK National Audit Office , which had previously conducted a similar review.

Gregor Virant, Head of Programme SIGMA at OECD underlined the importance of the Accounting Chamber’s audit, noting that its results will be significant for further monitoring of the reform's progress.

For reference: The Accounting Chamber plans to present the results of the compliance audit on ‘Reforming the Civil ServiceRemuneration System’ in early autumn.