The Parliament has successfully passed a supplementary budget necessitated by the inability of the initially approved budget to cover the state’s expenses for this year. In today’s session, the budget garnered approval with 57 MPs voting in favor and 10 MPs voting against.
In response to the financial shortfall, the government sought approval for an additional budget of MVR 6 billion, supplementing the initially approved MVR 42.8 billion for the year. The government’s estimation indicates that the budget would reach MVR 49.3 billion by the year’s end.
The budget committee, in the process of approving the supplementary budget, introduced an amendment to allocate funds for the media, fulfilling a commitment made by the new government. During the committee stage, Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MPs proposed the amendment following President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu’s request to include these funds in next year’s state budget.
The committee endorsed a budget of MVR 6.5 million for the media, specifying the allocation under budget code 1265 of the special budget for media outlets and registered broadcasting service providers.
Responding to allegations of unlawfully submitting the supplementary budget, Finance Minister Ibrahim Ameer clarified that the approved budget for this year had not been fully utilized, with MVR 40.4 billion spent out of the MVR 42.8 billion. He asserted that the budget was submitted in accordance with the law.
