Budgets must be spent under the financial rules and regulations and accounts for the expenditure must be auditable: Vice-Senior General

Regions and states need to cut the expenditures as much as possible, said Vice Chairman of the Financial Commission Vice-Chairman of the State Administration Council Deputy Prime Minister Vice-Senior General Soe Win at the coordination meeting on submission of the region and state budgets for the 2022-23 financial year at the Office of the SAC in Nay Pyi Taw yesterday afternoon.
In his address, the Vice-Senior General said today’s meeting was to scrutinize the earmarks of budgets of regions and states for the 2022-2023 financial year in accord with the Constitution before submitting them to the Financial Commission. The Ministry of Planning and Finance has coordinated with the region and state economic ministers on 22 and 23 February through video conferencing. This meeting was held to further coordinate among the region and state chief ministers to further submit the budgets to the financial commission.
It can be seen that the income of the State in all aspects may lessen due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and changes in the world’s political landscape. Hence, the Union provided 88 per cent of monetary assistance to regions and states, lessening 12 per cent of monetary assistance than the 2020-2021 financial year. A lesser quota for the income from the revenue was allotted. However, region and state chief ministers were urged to spend the budget on the tasks directly benefiting the people depending on the allotted funds from the Union and regions and states.
The Vice-Senior General stated that the FY2022-23 is to encourage the resurge of the State economy. And, the ordinary expenditure related to the administrative measures such as salaries for service personnel, fuel costs, and maintenance charges must be scrutinized thriftily while prioritizing the cost for manufacturing to increase the GDP and expenditures for regional development. In its scrutiny, the Ministry of Planning and Finance estimated and scrutinized two points of ordinary expenditure, two points of capital expenditure and actually available amounts of foreign loans.
Union ministers and region and state chief ministers were invited to submit more discussions related to the scrutinized budget coordinated with the region and state governments with the Ministry of Planning and Finance.
Secretary of the commission Union Minister U Win Shein explained the brief reports on scrutiny of the ministry over the budgets earmarked by regions and states in 2022-23 FY and Deputy Minister U Maung Maung Win, the estimated budgets for regions and states in the financial year. Union Auditor-General Dr Kan Zaw explained the auditing for the budget.
In his concluding address, the Vice-Senior General said that the budgets of regions and states must be in line with the five-point road map and nine objectives and spent on regional development tasks such as electrification, rural development and improvement of transportation in accord with the State policies. In so doing, they all have to abide by the findings and recommendations of the Union Auditor-General in spending the budget and the spending of the budget must be restricted exactly.
Budgets must be spent under the financial rules and regulations and accounts for the expenditure must be auditable. The total income for the 2019-20 financial year was more than K1,177 billion. The preliminary amount of income for the 2020-21 financial year was more than K786.6 billion, and the six-month mini-budget of the 2021-22FY was estimated as more than K516.8 billion and the scrutinized income for 2022-23 financial year was more than K1,058.9 billion. The correct expenditure was more than K1,341 billion for 2019-20 FY, the preliminary amount of expenditure more than K3,053.5 billion in the mini-budget period over K1,579.8 billion and scrutinized amount of expenditure for 2022-23 FY, more than K3,131.5 billion. The ratio of income to expenditure was 1:3. The expenditure is three times more than the income.
In comparing the budget ratio between mini-budget and 2022-23 financial year, the expenditure ratio declines in Kachin and Kayah states but increases in Ayeyawady region, Kayin, Chin and Rakhine states. Sagaing, Taninthayi, Bago, Mandalay and Magway regions and Mon and Shan states maintained past and present expenditure ratios. Regions and states need to cut the expenditures as much as possible.
The budget for the 2022-23 financial year will be submitted to the financial commission and then to the Union government meeting. It will be submitted to the State Administration Council to enact the Union Budget Law. Region and state governments need to make preparations to submit their budgets to the State Administration Council so as to enact the laws.—MNA