Finance minister defends budget review bill

The Minister of Finance, Alamine Ousmane Mey yesterday, March 29, 2015 told members of the National Assembly’s Finance and Budget Committee that the amendment of the Finance Law for the 2015 financial year was necessitated by certain events that occurred in 2015, leading to an upward review of the budget. In effect, the 2015 budget was finally balanced in revenue and expenditure at the sum of FCFA 3,992,600,000,000, against an initial estimate of FCFA 3,746,600,000,000, in terms of activities and amounts.

Before the committee presided over by its Chairperson, Hon. Ayayi Rosette Julienne Moutymbo, Alamine Ousmane Mey was presenting and defending a bill to ratify Ordinance No. 2015/4 of December 23, 2015 to amend and supplement some provisions of Law No. 2014/26 of December 23, 2014, which was the Finance Law of the Republic of Cameroon for the 2015 Financial Year.

Outlining the activities and amounts he earlier referred to, the Finance Minister first mentioned the renewal of licences of MTN and Orange mobile telephone companies that generated additional revenue amounting to FCFA 150 billion, of which FCFA 30 billion was spent in 2015. The second activity was the implementation of the decision to restructure the National Refining Company, SONARA, which amongst others, led to early repayment of the State’s debt owed by the refinery, amounting to FCFA 150 billion.

Meanwhile, government ensured the start of implementation of the Three-year Emergency Plan to accelerate economic growth, for which FCFA 66 billion was spent in 2015. Likewise, government undertook the initial financing of preparatory activities for the forthcoming 2016 and 2019 African Cup of Nations tournaments to the tune of FCFA 30 billion in 2015.

Thus, the Ordinance needing ratification included additional revenue of FCFA 246 billion for payment appropriations and FCFA 331 billion for commitment authorisations, leading to the upward review of the 2015 budget. The bill scrutinised yesterday was one of the three bills submitted to the National Assembly one day earlier by government.