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Finance Minister Dr. Nigel Clarke
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Dr. Nigel Clarke
By Clinton McGregor
Rising inflation and ongoing disruptions in the international financial markets have forced the government to seek an additional $60 billion to fund its budget for the 2022/23 fiscal period.
This was disclosed by Finance Minister Dr. Nigel Clarke, who tabled the First Supplementary Estimates in the House of Representatives on Tuesday afternoon.
Parliament had earlier this year approved a $912 billion budget.
But Dr. Clarke told the House that the unexpected surge in inflation and the ongoing international supply chain crisis caused firstly by the COVID-19 pandemic and then the Russia/Ukraine conflict, forced the administration to find new funding for social intervention programmes to cushion the blow on everyday Jamaicans.
Of the $60 billion increase in the budget, $21.1 billion has been set aside for public sector wages.
Dr. Clarke said an expected increase in revenue of $65.5 billion should offset the rise in expenditure.
These increased inflows, the finance minister said, are due to the "higher-than-anticipated recovery of the economy from the impact of COVID-19 as well as higher-than-expected inflation".
At the end of September 2022, total revenues were $40.4 billion above budget, including $35 billion from tax revenue.
Dr. Clarke said this improved performance has been factored into the current economic forecast, which now anticipates total revenue flows of $815.5 billion for the current 2022/23 fiscal year.
The First Supplementary Estimates have been sent to the Public Administration and Appropriations Committee (PAAC) for review.
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