Demystifying the 2018-2019 Budget
LAST WEEK, the Department of Economics at the University of West Indies, Mona, held its usual policy forum to demystify the national budget for the 2018-2019 fiscal year. Speakers included Mrs Helene Davis-White, who gave the trade union point of view, Dr Damien King, who gave an assessment of the important long-term trends in the Budget, and me.
As usual, it was highlighted that it is important for every Jamaican to understand the national budget. The Government has tabled a $773.7billion Budget for the 2017-2018 fiscal year. Of this amount, approximately $201 billion, or 26 per cent of the total Budget, is allocated to employee compensation, including wages and salaries; 29 per cent has been earmarked for recurrent programmes, an allotted $222 billion; 37 per cent, or $289 billion, will go towards debt servicing, inclusive of principal and interest; and the remaining eight per cent, or $61.6 billion, for capital expenditure.
The Government has earmarked $16.7 billion for work-related projects aimed at developing and improving the country’s physical infrastructure for the 2018-19 fiscal year, which include US$2 billion for North-South Highway Development Projects, US$385 million for the South Coast Highway Improvement Project, and US$220 million for the Montego Bay Perimeter Road Project. The Ministry of National Security has been allotted a 23.4 per cent increase from the $63.6 billion received in 2017-18 to $78.5 billion for the 2018-2019 fiscal year. The Government has allotted $148 million to improve the mobility of the Department of Correctional Services, $1.1 billion for the Citizen Security and Justice Programme, $6.6 million for the rehabilitation and reintegration of local offenders and deported persons, and $14 million for the reintegration and rehabilitation of involuntary returned migrants in Jamaica.
The total tax revenue for the 2018-2019 fiscal year is estimated to be $518.44 billion compared to $478.25 billion for the 2017-2018 period. Non-tax revenue, including miscellaneous receipts, is estimated to be $60.88 billion. Grants are projected at $9.1 billion, loan receipts are projected at $103.2 billion.