What We Do

We support governments in designing and implementing strategies for inclusive and sustainable economic growth. This includes assistance with the preparation of national development plans, poverty reduction strategies, and medium-term economic frameworks. We help strengthen institutional capacity for macroeconomic analysis, forecasting, and policy planning, including the use of modelling tools. We also provide advice on the design and reform of social protection and social assistance systems to promote equity and reduce vulnerability.

We have a robust track record in over 25 countries in supporting Public Financial Management reforms, which is the core area of our cumulative expertise.

Our expertise spans budget planning and formulation, budget execution and public sector accounting, programme/performance budgeting, public investment planning, and internal and external audit.  Our work is accompanied by intensive capacity development and the provision of practical tools to support implementation and sustainability.

1. 1. Budget planning and formulation
      We support governments in strengthening their budget preparation processes, expenditure classification systems, introduction and improvement of medium-term budget frameworks. Our services include support in aligning budgets with national priorities and development strategies. We assist in improving public investment planning, including project appraisal, selection, and inclusion in the budget. We also provide technical assistance in programme-based budgeting and the use of performance indicators.
   2. Budget execution, treasury management, accounting and reporting
      We help strengthen budget execution systems to ensure that approved budgets are implemented as planned. This includes support in commitment control, cash management, and payment systems. Our services cover accounting standards and practices, with a focus on timely and reliable in-year and year-end reporting.
   3. Internal and external audit
      We support the development and reform of internal audit functions within public institutions, including the establishment of audit units and training of staff. We also provide advice on strengthening supreme audit institutions, including performance audit practices. Our work often includes promoting follow-up mechanisms for audit findings.

Operational Assessments for EU Macro-Financial Assistance

We have been entrusted during the last 15 years by the European Commission to conduct Operational Assessments of public financial management systems and related financial circuits in countries receiving EU Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA). These assessments cover EU candidate and pre-candidate countries, as well as countries of the EU Neighbourhood. Our work focuses on reviewing the capacity and reliability of key public institutions, such as ministries of finance, central banks, and audit institutions, responsible for managing EU funds. The objective is to assess the adequacy of financial systems and procedures, and to ensure the proper use of EU funds under MFA operations.

We assist governments in reviewing legal and institutional frameworks for public debt management and in developing debt management strategies that reduce risks and improve transparency. We provide specialised training on yield curve analysis and the use of debt instruments. One of our key areas of expertise is the development of government securities markets, including the establishment and monitoring of primary dealers’ arrangements as well as developing the regulatory and operational framework for the issuance of bonds in international markets.

Our team has strong expertise in financial risk analysis, including ratio analysis, z-score modelling, liability and default analysis, and asset–liability sensitivity assessments. We support credit risk assessments by applying structured risk categorisation (such as market, liquidity, and operational risks) and developing credit risk models for public liabilities. We also advise on project finance, leveraging strategies, and investment appraisal, using techniques such as sensitivity and scenario analysis and assessments of financing options.

We have notable expertise in financial analysis (e.g., ratio analysis, z-score modelling, liability analysis, default analysis, asset–liability sensitivity analysis, etc), credit risk assessment (risk categorisation (market risk, fix risk, operational risk, etc), liability credit risk modelling, etc), leveraging, project finance and investment opportunities assessment (evaluation, sensitivity and scenario analysis, ways of financing, etc).

Our team recently undertook extensive work in Moldova in reviewing financial statements of Municipal-owned and State-owned Enterprises (SoEs) and assisting in the preparation of the relevant section in the Fiscal Risk Statement of the 2018 and 2019 State Budgets. Our associates also constructed an excel-based model to aid in the identification and measurement of financial risk and, designed and conducted an intensive training approach to raise the technical skills of Government officials in the analysis of financial statements and the financial risk and solvency of SoEs.

We support governments in reforming administrative structures and strengthening institutional functions at national and sub-national levels. Our work covers both policy and operational aspects, helping to align institutional arrangements, administrative procedures, and public service functions with national reform priorities and development strategies.

Our technical assistance in this area covers policy and regulatory reform, human resource development, performance management, and results-based planning systems. We place particular emphasis on strengthening inter-institutional coordination and improving the mechanisms for planning, managing, and monitoring reforms.

We have extensive experience in supporting education sector reforms, with a strong focus on governance and sector finance, including financial planning and budgeting systems, costing, fiscal sustainability analysis of education projects, budget execution and performance monitoring systems, as well as financing and sustainability. Our work links education policy with public financial management and public administration reform to enhance equitable access to quality education.

We also support reforms in the health sector, particularly in strengthening sector governance, planning and financing mechanisms. This includes assistance in improving budgeting and financial flows, institutional arrangements, and monitoring systems to support more effective and equitable service delivery in health.

We support digital transformation within public sector institutions as part of broader institutional and organisational reform. From assessing the operability of PFM IT systems to designing and operationalising large-scale information systems, as well as digitising state records and strengthening data management capacity, 4Assist has delivered impactful digital solutions across Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia.

Our team has helped ministries modernise their education, finance, and investment systems — including Education Management Information Systems (in Lao PDR), a Public Investment Register (in Moldova), and Government Financial Management Information Systems (in Cambodia), to name just a few examples.

Always focused on sustainability, we pair system design with hands-on capacity building, empowering institutions to fully own, manage, and benefit from digital tools that enhance transparency, traceability, and evidence-based policymaking.