Home / Publications On-Line / Estimates / Departmental Performance Report 2001–2002 /

Departmental Performance Report 2001–2002

Foreward

In the spring of 2000, the President of the Treasury Board tabled in Parliament the document Results for Canadians: A Management Framework for the Government of Canada. This document sets a clear agenda for improving and modernizing management practices in federal departments and agencies.

Four key management commitments form the basis for this vision of how the Government will deliver their services and benefits to Canadians in the new millennium. In this vision, departments and agencies recognize that they exist to serve Canadians and that a “citizen focus” shapes all activities, programs and services. This vision commits the Government of Canada to manage its business by the highest public service values. Responsible spending means spending wisely on the things that matter to Canadians. And finally, this vision sets a clear focus on results—the impact and effects of programs.

Departmental performance reports play a key role in the cycle of planning, monitoring, evaluating, and reporting of results through ministers to Parliament and citizens. Departments and agencies are encouraged to prepare their reports following certain principles. Based on these principles, an effective report provides a coherent and balanced picture of performance that is brief and to the point. It focuses on outcomes—benefits to Canadians and Canadian society—and describes the contribution the organization has made toward those outcomes. It sets the department’s performance in context and discusses risks and challenges faced by the organization in delivering its commitments. The report also associates performance with earlier commitments as well as achievements realized in partnership with other governmental and non-governmental organizations. Supporting the need for responsible spending, it links resources to results. Finally, the report is credible because it substantiates the performance information with appropriate methodologies and relevant data.

In performance reports, departments and agencies strive to respond to the ongoing and evolving information needs of parliamentarians and Canadians. The input of parliamentarians and other readers can do much to improve these reports over time. The reader is encouraged to assess the performance of the organization according to the principles outlined above, and provide comments to the department or agency that will help it in the next cycle of planning and reporting.