INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
President Ranil Wickremesinghe, in his capacity as the Minister of Finance, Economic Stabilization and National Policies, presented proposed
budgetary allocations for the fiscal year 2024, in parliament today (Nov.13).In the 2024 Budget, the Sri Lankan government has projected
ambitious revenue and budget deficit targets.According to President Wickremesinghe, the budget deficit for the fiscal year 2024 is estimated
2,851 billion, which is 9.1 as a percentage of the GDP
This is higher than the revised 8.5% of GDP in the current year
The original target for 2023 was 7.9%.The total expenditure for next year has been set at a record Rs
6,978 billion, an increase of nearly 33% compared to 2023, with capital expenditure more than doubling and Rs
450 billion reserved for bank recapitalization.In the 78th Budget, the Sri Lankan government has allocated Rs
5,277 billion for recurring expenditures such as subsidies and salary payments
For salaries and wages, Rs
1,127 billion has been earmarked, and Rs
1,158 billion for subsidies and transfers.The Sri Lankan government has also allocated a staggering Rs
3,000 billion to restructure foreign debt and to repay international sovereign bonds in 2024
He also proposed to raise the debt ceiling by Rs
3,900 billion.The total projected revenue will be Rs
4,107 billion (including tax revenue of Rs
3,415 billion, however, only Rs
2,410 billion has been collected in the days that have elapsed this year
900 billion have been obtained in the year 2021
Currently, the total overdrafts are brought to a lower level of Rs
According to the new Central Bank Act, money printing is not allowed
tax collection to make sure that high-income people do not slip through
At present the burden of taxes is placed only on a few slices of the society
Budget has proposed several measures to rectify these issues, highlighting that these proposals need to be implemented gradually
that a special penal provision be introduced to prosecute people who have not submitted tax returns and information required by the tax
obtain approval for a building plan by the applicant, register a motor vehicle or renew a license by the owner, and register a land or title
