20 percent of budget spent in first four months of 2023/24

The government has managed to spend around 20 percent of the budget allocated for 2023/24 in the first four months of the fiscal year.

According to the Financial Comptroller General’s Office (FCGO), the government has spent Rs 355.63bn out of Rs 1,751.31bn allocated in the current fiscal year.

The government has so far expended 23.75 percent of its recurrent budget, 9.93 percent of the capital budget, and 17.72 percent of its budget allocated for financial management.

Out of the total budget, Rs 1,141.78bn has been set aside for recurrent expenditure, Rs 302.07bn for capital expenditure, and Rs 307.45bn for financial management in the current fiscal year.

According to the FCGO, the government has spent Rs 271.17bn of its recurrent budget. Likewise, Rs 29.98bn of the capital budget has been spent so far, while it has spent Rs 54.46bn of the budget allocated for financial management.

The government uses funds allocated for financial management to service its domestic and foreign debt.

In the current fiscal year, the government has allocated more budget for financial management compared to the capital budget.

Looking at the government spending over the first four months, spending toward financial management is more than double of what the government has managed to spend toward capital spending. This means the government's spending toward servicing foreign and domestic debt is higher than what it is spending on development works.

The government's capital spending gains momentum in the fourth quarter as implementing agencies often initiate projects at the eleventh hour to avoid budget freeze. Spending taxpayers' money in this manner is incorrect because a substantial portion of these payments occurs without adherence to proper processes and legal mandates. This compromises the quality of work. Such spending is often done in collaboration among implementing agencies i.e. government offices, contractors and suppliers.

During the first four months of 2022/23, the government's total spending stood at Rs. 351bn. Recurrent expenditure, capital expenditure, and financial management expenditure amounted to Rs 281.39bn, Rs 26.30bn, and Rs 43.31bn, respectively, in the review period.

The government mobilized 20.08 percent of the revenue target set for the current fiscal year in the first four months of 2023/24. Out of Rs 1,422.54bn that the government is looking to raise in the current fiscal year, the government mobilized Rs 276.64bn in the first four months. Of the total revenue, Rs 254.30bn is from tax revenue, and Rs 22.33bn is from non-tax revenue.

Likewise, the government has managed to mobilize Rs 3.75bn as foreign grants in the four months of 2023/24. This is 5.42 percent of Rs 49.94bn that the government is looking to raise under foreign grants in the current fiscal year.