Budget: Finance gets biggest slice of cake

IN step with the trend of increasing Government debt, the Ministry of Finance will see the largest increase – N$232 million – in its budget in the coming year.

Out of its total budget of N$2,36 billion – the second largest budget for a single Ministry, after the Ministry of Basic Education and Culture’s N$2,399 billion allocation – N$1,12 billion is to be spent to pay interest on Namibia’s national debts. With a deficit of N$589 million to be financed, additional loans of N$396 million outside the Budget to be covered, and another N$600 million needed to set aside cash to repay most of a Government Bond that matures in April 2005, Government will need to borrow an additional N$1,584 billion in the coming year to balance its books, according to the main Budget document.The N$1,12 billion that is budgeted to be needed to pay interest on the national debt would by itself have represented the third largest single budget allocation in 2004-05.Set to receive the largest allocation after the Ministries of Basic Education and Culture and Finance is the Ministry of Health And Social Services, with N$1,7 billion.The Ministry of Defence will receive the next biggest slice of public money – N$1,08 billion (8,5 per cent of the total projected State spending in 2004-05).This means that the next financial year will be the first in which Namibia’s defence spending will exceed the N$1 billion mark.With a deficit of N$589 million to be financed, additional loans of N$396 million outside the Budget to be covered, and another N$600 million needed to set aside cash to repay most of a Government Bond that matures in April 2005, Government will need to borrow an additional N$1,584 billion in the coming year to balance its books, according to the main Budget document.The N$1,12 billion that is budgeted to be needed to pay interest on the national debt would by itself have represented the third largest single budget allocation in 2004-05.Set to receive the largest allocation after the Ministries of Basic Education and Culture and Finance is the Ministry of Health And Social Services, with N$1,7 billion.The Ministry of Defence will receive the next biggest slice of public money – N$1,08 billion (8,5 per cent of the total projected State spending in 2004-05).This means that the next financial year will be the first in which Namibia’s defence spending will exceed the N$1 billion mark.