Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo on Thursday said the 2024 National Budget will be presented “early” next year and the government has identified key areas of focus to achieve its development agenda.
The Vice President, during his weekly press conference, said budget preparations have commenced with the government keen on achieving the goals it set out in its manifesto.
Two key elements of the budget, he said, are the government’s continued focus on economic and social investments, and a continued focus on expanding people’s disposable income.
The first set of investments involves spending in the health, education and security sectors while building critical infrastructure needed across the country.
On the other hand, Jagdeo explained that increasing people’s disposable income involves increasing their salaries, reducing taxes and employing more people across the country.
And he said, “All of these measures will be catered for in the 2024 budget.”
These are only two key elements of the 2024 budget, however. Jagdeo said citizens can expect much more investments, policies and programmes to keep the country “safe” and “vibrant” while generating more jobs and creating more income for people.
This year, the government passed a $781.9 billion National Budget and sought supplementary funds of $31 billion, $61 billion and $25.9 billion to execute projects and respond to challenges like the prolonged drought faced this year.
As preparations for the National Budget move ahead, the Vice President also announced that government ministers will next week hold a series of press conferences to outline the progress made so far in each of their sectors.
The Guyana dollar needs to be strengthen.