The government’s guidelines describe in brief how Sida should perform its work.
The guidelines also describe how the authority should assist the government, which organizations the authority should co-operate with and how the authority should organize its work in partner countries.
The government’s annual letter of appropriation sets out the objectives Sida should achieve in its work and how much money the authority is allocated.
It also states how the money should be divided between the agency’s various activities, such as national co-operation, regional co-operation, specific sector issues and administration.
Sweden’s development aid budget for 2009 totalled about SEK 34 billion. About SEK 16.8 billion of this is allocated to Sida. The remainder principally goes through the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
The government also gives the authority particular tasks every year. These could include extending its knowledge within a particular area or making the organization more efficient.
Follow-up and results
Each year, Sida submits an annual report to the government, with information about costs, revenues and results. The government carries out follow-up work and evaluates the agency’s operations based on this annual report.
Sida submits a results supplement to the government together with the annual report. This supplement contains several examples of how Swedish development aid has contributed towards reducing poverty.
The annual report and government agency budget information form the basis for the government budget for the coming year and the government’s letter of appropriation.
The Swedish National Audit Office and the Swedish Agency for Development Evaluation (SADEV) are two authorities that examine Sida’s operations. The results of their examinations help Sida improve its operations and become even better at achieving results.
