The Ministry of Finance has stated that the projected budget for next year stands at USD3.24 billion.
According to the Medium Fiscal and Debt Strategy Report published by the finance ministry, the total budget for 2024 is estimated at USD3.2 billion from baseline expenses, allocations for new projects and programmes, and anticipated savings from cost-reduction measures. It is a 5.3% increase over the budget estimate for this year.
The report showed that the expenditure forecast for the year 2024 amounts to USD3.1 billion. It showed that recurrent expenditure is estimated at USD2.1 billion and capital expenditure at USD966 million. The implementation of the proposed cost-cutting measures is expected to reduce expenditure to USD2.9 billion by 2025. In the medium term, a moderate annual increase of 0.5% in costs is expected.
The report also showed that the total budget deficit for 2024 is expected to be USD640 million based on the proposed changes in expenditure and revenue policies, which is equivalent to 8.5% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The primary budget deficit is expected to be USD300 million in 2024, which is equivalent to 3.9% of GDP. In the medium term, the ministry has estimated that the overall deficit will be reduced and the primary balance of the budget will be raised, which will help reduce the increase in public debt and achieve a sustainable level. The ministry also forecasts the state debt to remain at almost the same level next year, at an estimated USD7.1 billion.