Análisis del Gasto Público Social en el Presupuesto Nacional 2010[Social Public Expenditure Analysis in the 2010 National Budget]

The National Budget has a key role as an instrument of funds allocation for different social priorities and resources redistribution with localized impact in the provinces. The main objective of Social Public Expenditure (GPS) is to promote the access of most vulnerable social groups to quality basic services. In this mission, the National Government has the essential function of guaranteeing minimum levels of interregional equity between provinces. The present research analyzes the allocated funds to the various social programs, priorities and allocation criteria used to provinces in the National Budget 2010, comparing these figures turn to the 2009 budget implementation. This study is part of a Siena Foundation project made possible by the support of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, Argentina headquarters, which includes the elaboration of Public Social Spending during the parliamentary debate, as well as monitoring their implementation in order to provide relevant and timely information on public finances in Argentina. From the study, it shows the critical importance of Social Public Expenditure in the National Budget, especially as a tool to complement the social services that provide the provinces to their inhabitants and the challenges that are imposed to improve the social conditions of the population. Among the key findings and challenges are the following: 1. 60% of the National Budget goes to Social Public Expenditure. In this way the National Budget becomes a key mechanism for prioritization and reallocation of resources 2. Increases in the GPS 2010 compared to 2009 allow to stakeout that the priorities were assigned to social security, education and science and technology programs. 3. The main distribution criteria for allocated resources among the provinces to social programs are the amount of population. That is, most resources are concentrated in provinces with larger populations. Second, in general, there are certain relationships with more objective distribution criteria, such as poverty rates, unemployment or housing deficit of the provinces. However, these indicators don’t play an important role, and there can be seen inequities in the distribution of the provinces. 4. The Finance Act 2010 has weaknesses in information and geographic distribution of social programs. In summary, the work highlights the critical importance of Social Public Expenditure in the National Budget, especially social security spending, which becomes more relevant with the new Universal Child Allocation for Social Protection program, as well as programs for education, health and advocacy and social assistance, among others, which together amount to 60% of National Budget. As a result, emerges the need to pay special attention to the priorities that are assigned each year to social spending and how it is distributed among the provinces, to thereby promote greater equity in the distribution of resources among the provinces. Therefore, it is a priority; discussing the criteria of direct or indirect resources allocation to the provinces, especially for programs with greater social impact. In these cases should be given greater weight to objective criteria related more to the social situation of the provinces, together with the amount of population, thus strengthening the role of national government as a guarantor of minimum standards in terms of interregional equity.