Based on a sample of countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, this book sets out areas in which governments could focus to improve the quality of public expenditures. It seeks to identify, from a regional perspective, first, the cross-cutting strengths and weaknesses of public financial management and procurement systems, and second, the characteristics of and lessons that can be learned from reform programs. In undertaking this analysis, the authors have taken a particular interest in establishing what role civil society organizations may have played, or could play, in promoting transparency and accountability in the public sector. More specifically, this book focuses on the specific institutional arrangements and the policy choices that underpin the management of public finances, which are set out primarily in a sample of publicly available Country Financial Accountability Assessments and Country Procurement Assessment Reports undertaken by the World Bank and its development partners.