South Sudan Minister of Finance and Economic Planning has presented fiscal year Budget 2022 -23 to the Lawmakers at the national assembly on Wednesday.
Hon. Agak Achuil says the budget gives priority to the implementation of the peace agreement.
He stated that the projected revenues of South Sudanese Pounds (SSP) 832.8 billion Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with an estimated expenditure of 1.3 trillion SSP allocated to the Reconstituted Transitional National Legislature Assembly (R-TNLA).
Hon. Agak said, the government is working hard in improving the education and health sectors but the highest spending is required in the Unification of the armed forces in this fiscal year budget.
The parties to the peace agreement have expressed a lack of financial support for graduation soldiers that was been in the cantonment sites for over two years.
“The unification of armed forces that was agreed upon in April 2022 implies an increase in the number of military personnel for about two-thirds which increases the wage bill,” Agak said.
The Finance Minister said an estimated amount of SSP 715.7 billion is a collection from oil revenues while SSP 117 billion is non-oil revenues making an increase by SSP 58.5 in the non-oil revenue sector compared to the previous year.
He revealed that South Sudan borrowed 2.05 billion US dollars, a debt which the country is yet clear.
The new budget also allocated an estimated amount of 250.7 billion SSP for infrastructure.
Despite the huge attendances by the members of TNLA, the SPLM-IO MPs continues to boycott session citing their protested over political bills passed without being agreed upon by all the parties.