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Liberian government presents first proposed budget

Xinhua, May 17, 2016 Adjust font size:

The Liberian government has submitted the country's Proposed Budget for the fiscal year 2016/2017 to legislators for approval consistent with law.

Minister of Finance and Development Planning Boima S. Kamara presented the budget on behalf of the government in Monrovia, the country's capital city on Monday.

"My team and I have come today to present you this Proposed Budget which we believe outlines and captures our country's priorities in the best possible way given the constraints, facing the country," Kamara said.

Total projected revenue envelop is 555.9 million U.S. dollars comprising of 495.5 million dollars for core domestic revenue, 30.2 million dollars as grant and 30.1 million dollars as contingent domestic revenue.

"We have endeavored to keep social spending on health at 77 million dollars, education at 83 million dollars and social development spending at 10.5 million dollars," the minister told lawmakers.

"Additionally, we have allocated 20 million dollars toward elections; 10 million dollars for United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) drawdown, 5 million dollars for agriculture; 15 million dollars on road construction, 3 million dollars for road maintenance fund and 1.5 million dollars toward the airport runway rehabilitation," he said.

He said with the approval of the legislature, government intends to seek donor funding either in grant or loan to help underwrite these expenditure.

Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in a communication to the legislature requested two weeks extension, to complete the proposed budget which Kamara acknowledged has been challenging due to the economic situations facing the country.

The minister told lawmaker that the slowness of economic recovery from the shocks of Ebola coupled with the global decline in commodity prices affected the country's two primary export commodities, iron ore and rubber.

"Our expenditure demand has come under pressure from the need to prepare for 2017 elections as well as support our security forces to take over from UNMIL which has already begun to draw down," he added.

He said these are imperatives which cannot be compromised as "governance and security will provide the space we need in order to conduct other businesses." Kamara said under these conditions, it was extremely difficult to balance the budget and that was why an extension was necessary. Endit