Speaker of parliament and former President Mohamed Nasheed has stated that next year’s state budget will change the course of the nation.
While speaking at Tuesday's parliament session, Nasheed stated that this is a huge budget amounting to a total of MVR 37 billion. He further noted that the state budget was at seven billion in 2008 and has now risen to 37 billion as a result of the government’s ongoing taxation efforts.
According to Nasheed, the state budget has allocated 100-200 million per island and is part of the budget’s focus on decentralization policies.
An island with a population of around 500 people, for example, such as Magoodhoo, is receiving state funding of MVR five to six million. That is twice the total amount given to councils in the past. On top of that, councils have the freedom to find funding themselves.Speaker of parliament and former president Mohamed Nasheed
While the parliamentary debate on the state budget began on Tuesday, Speaker Nasheed highlighted that the general committee has decided to allocate a 15-minute period to each member, the first time round. Hence, if the member is not present on the floor during their allocated time, they stand to lose their chance to speak.
The debate is scheduled to continue until 5 pm.
“I request all members wait until their turn to speak before leaving the parliament floor. I wish to provide the opportunity for every member to speak therefore if I must get the sergeant at arms to drag the member from their home to present the member on time”Speaker of parliament and former president Mohamed Nasheed
The proposed state budget of MVR 37.5 billion has an expenditure of MVR 35.6 billion and the biggest Public Sector Investment Programme (PSIP) seen in the country’s history, set at MVR 10.1 million, MVR five million more than the past year.