In a parliamentary session today, approval was granted for the MVR 6.5 billion supplementary budget proposed by the Finance Ministry for the remaining period of this year.
This additional allocation increases the state’s budget for 2023 from MVR 42.8 billion to MVR 49.3 billion. During last Thursday’s meeting, the Budget Committee of Parliament had previously endorsed the supplementary budget, including an amendment earmarking MVR 6.5 million for media outlets.
During the parliamentary session, 57 Members of Parliament voted in favour of the supplementary budget and the committee’s amendment. In comparison, 10 Members, all affiliated with The Democrats, voted against approval.
The breakdown of the supplementary budget reveals MVR 3.1 billion designated for recurrent expenditure and MVR 3.3 billion for capital expenditure. Recurrent expenditure includes significant allocations such as MVR 1.8 billion for subsidies and MVR 1.2 billion for Aasandha, increasing the total budget for Aasandha to MVR 2.3 billion for the year.
The approved supplementary budget raises the total recurrent expenditure to MVR 31.7 billion, with increased funding for capital expenditure primarily attributed to a surge in spending on Public Sector Investment Program (PSIP) projects, receiving an additional MVR 1.7 billion.
