By Sallieu S. Kanu
The Government of Sierra Leone faces a revenue shortfall in the day-to-day spending for the second half of 2023, according to the 2023 supplementary budget which was presented in Parliament by the Ministry of Finance.
Sheku Fantamadi Bangura said that revenue collected during the first half of 2023 fell short of the revised target agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) during the combined 6th and 7th reviews in May 2023. “The shortfall of NLE138 million was accounted for by the less-than expected collections of income taxes, GST and import duties. This was due to technical challenges in configuring the 2023 Finance Bill tax policy measures in the automated platforms of the National Revenue Authority (NRA),” Bangura told Parliament on Monday.
The Finance Minister said that domestic revenue collected during the first half of 2023 amounted to NLe4.7 billion, exceeding the original target by NLe367 million. “All revenue streams, except income tax and fisheries royalties exceeded their respective targets relative to the original budget,” he said.
Bangura said that total grants received during the first half of 2023 amounted to NLe492.5 million compared to the expected amount of NLe1.19 billion, due to the slow disbursement of project grants by development partners. “There was no disbursement of budget support during the first half of the year.”
The situation has widened the gap between income and spending plans. Therefore, the Government is required to balance spending with income.
The supplementary budget portrays an outlook which is extremely challenging, and Government is expected to make tough choices later this year. It is apparent that plans for capital spending – investing in roads – are to go through a more radical reset.