New budget shows no sustainability: Kavekotora

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Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP) Member of Parliament Mike Kavekotora said he does not see anything in this year’s budget that suggests the country is on a sustainable path.

Kavekotora made the statement in the National Assembly on Thursday when he contributed to the Financial Year 2023/24 Budget debate.

Last month Finance Minister Iipumbu Shiimi tabled an N.dollars 84.6 billion budget in the National Assembly for the 2023/24 financial year, which represents an increase of 9.7 per cent from the comparable levels for last year.

Shiimi said, the national budget is anchored on three fiscal pillars of pro-sustainability under which it aims to reduce the budget deficit, pro-poor by providing support for the poor via various social safety nets, and pro-growth by optimising economic growth.

“What properties are incorporated in this budget to ensure sustainability? Public debt is still growing which translates into a higher cost in servicing those debts. Therefore, this budget cannot be pro-sustainability and simultaneously increase borrowing,” he said.

Kavekotora asked how the budget ensures sustainability while the country is living beyond its means and continues to spend what it does not have.

He said Shiimi admitted that the major boost in revenue came from the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) pool which is N.dollars 6.4 billion higher than previous estimates.

“The SACU revenue stream is beyond the government’s control and therefore cannot be a vehicle for sustainability,” he said.

The budget, he added, can also not be termed pro-poor as real income for the poor has depreciated significantly due to food inflation that shot up to around 12 per cent in the current financial year.

The cost of living for a family of four people in Namibia is estimated at around N.dollars 32 000 monthly, without rent, while for a single person it is around N.dollars 9 400, Kavekotora said.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency