Budget 2012 is about meeting needs of the people
…and creating an environment where our aspirations can be realised
MINISTER of Finance Dr. Ashni Singh said the much-anticipated National Budget for 2012, which he will be presenting to the National Assembly tomorrow, is about “meeting the needs of the Guyanese people and helping to create an environment where the aspirations of the Guyanese people can be realized.”
Also, it is built around a sustainable macroeconomic framework, the Finance Minister told the Chronicle yesterday in an interview on the upcoming budget, which will be Minister Singh’s sixth budget and his first since the historic November 28, 2011 general elections, following which the minister was re-appointed to his current portfolio.
Budget 2011 was presented by Minister Singh on 17th January 2011, under the theme ‘Together Building Tomorrow’s Guyana Today’, and was the largest budget in the country’s history, at a total of $161.4B.
Dr Singh said the presentation of the annual budget every year is a very important occasion in both the parliamentary and the national calendar.
“It’s an opportunity to present a review of economic developments in the country over the past year, situated in a regional and external context, and it’s an opportunity to outline plans and programmes for the coming year, and indeed, macro economic projections for the year,” he outlined.

Dr Singh said this budget is particularly significant because it is the first budget of the tenth Parliament of Guyana, adding, “So it does provide us with an opportunity that is even more significant than would normally be the case, to review economic developments and, in particular, to outline government’s plans and programmes, not only for 2012, but also for the medium term, certainly the next five years or so.”
The budget for 2012, he said, like its predecessors for several years now, will follow the format of accounting for economic performance last year and outlining plans and programmes for 2012.

ECONOMY  PERFORMING  EXTREMELY WELL
“I would say to you that the Guyanese economy has continued to perform extremely well; it has sustained its uninterrupted growth path; and that story will be told – the developments in the various sectors that have contributed to the sustaining of this economic growth,” he said.
The Finance Minister said budget 2012 will be situated in this context, and it is built on the premise that “our objective is continued economic growth and social development”.
“So it is built on a macroeconomic framework that is conducive to growth and development – that is a macroeconomic framework that places macroeconomic stability as a principal pillar and a framework that accommodates initiatives that are conducive to economic growth and social development”.
He said also, that the budget will see continued emphasis on the areas that have traditionally contributed to growth in the Guyanese economy, and “not only have contributed in the immediate term, but also laid the foundation for medium term and long term growth.
The minister noted that experience has shown investment in physical infrastructure is critical to laying the foundation for long term economic growth.
“And this is something that we recognise. In fact, the story of any economic success is built around facilitative infrastructure being in place,” Dr. Singh posited.
“…whether it is physical infrastructure such as roads, bridges and power generation; and in recent times, infrastructure has taken on a broader meaning with information and communications technology as a facilitator in growth,” Dr. Singh said.

He said the budget will also see continued emphasis on the social sector, because one of the striking achievements of recent years has been the progress we have made as a government in providing social services to the people of Guyana, and one of the central pillars of our commitment to the people of Guyana is the continued availability and continued access by the people to social services of steadily improving quality, and that will also be a feature of the budget. All of this, he said, is built around a sustainable macroeconomic framework.

HARSH HISTORY
He noted that, as a country, Guyana has worked very hard to return its macro economy to a credible position, noting, “We have worked very hard to restore the solvency of our country; we have come from a place 20 years ago, where our country was completely bankrupt; and it is through very diligent efforts that we are now at a point that is very distant from that harsh history of ours”.
“That point hasn’t been arrived at easily; it took tremendous perseverance, demonstration of policy commitment and policy responsibility, because, make no mistake about it, nobody gives you debt relief if they don’t believe that you are responsible and prudent in your management,” he said.
He said efforts have brought us to a point today where the solvency of the country is restored and the financial credibility and integrity of the country is restored, adding, “And we believe that it is important to guard those gains and to protect those gains, and one does that by ensuring that, year after year, the financial operations of government, starting from the budget, through the execution of the budget, are done in the most prudent manner possible.”
The Finance Minister said this is the central premise that the National Budget 2012 “really will embrace”, outlining preservation of the macroeconomic gains made, protection of macroeconomic  stability, promotion and facilitation of economic growth and, in particular, investment in social programmes to improve the quality of life for all Guyanese people.
Asked about Guyanese expectations of the budget, and responding to these calls, the Finance Minister said, “I have noted the various pronouncements that are being made and, as we normally do, we do listen and monitor these kinds of pronouncements, to get a sense of what people are thinking and saying.
“I will say that the budget will have much in it that goes to the core of meeting the needs of the Guyanese people. In fact, virtually the entire budget is about meeting the immediate, medium and long term needs of the Guyanese people, and helping to create an environment where the aspirations of the Guyanese people can be realised,” he assured.

ANTICIPATED REACTION BY OPPOSITION
Talking about his anticipated reaction by the Opposition to the budget, Dr. Singh said, “I remain hopeful, because it is hard for me to comprehend how the opposition could seriously argue with many of the things that they will see in the budget.”
“I don’t believe that it will be easy for them to disagree with a lot that they will see in the budget, and so I remain hopeful that the debate will be based on the issues of development in our country, and that these issues would be examined on their merit, rather than on partisan political considerations for the purpose of grandstanding,” he declared.
The minister observed that occasionally, one gets glimpses of an Opposition that believes that it is there to oppose for the sake of opposing. “I hope that the budget debate is not characterized by this, and I hope that we have an objective and rational debate,” he said.
He observed that pronouncements were made, including some by the Leader of the Opposition, saying that the Opposition is not interested in a collision or in gridlock.
“I was pleased to hear the Opposition Leader say that the Opposition is not looking for collision or gridlock in the Parliament… but instead I got the impression from the statement made that there was a willingness to engage in a meaningful way and to examine issues on their merit, rather than to oppose for the sake of opposing,” he said.
“I hope that that pronouncement is translated into the substance of the debate, and the votes that are taken at the end of the debate in Parliament,” the Minister said.
“I don’t want really to consider the eventuality that we will not get their support. I would say that were we to find ourselves in that situation, then we would need, obviously, to be guided by the relevant statutes, and we would need to consider relevant options at that point in time; but I don’t believe that is where we will find ourselves at the end of this budget debate,” the Finance Minister posited.
Asked about consultations with the Opposition on the budget, Dr. Singh insisted that the issue of budget consultations is deliberately being manipulated and distorted by a small section of politically motivated commentators, for political reasons.
He pointed out that the budget process does not commence in February or January, and the policy-making function “does not stop at the time that the budget is presented and resume at the time that budget preparation commences for the following year”.
The policy-making function is an ongoing one, he underscored, adding, “Gone are the days when budget consultation meant a one-off photo opportunity two weeks or four weeks before budget day.”
He said meaningful input into the policy-making function cannot happen on the basis of this, pointing out, “And we have moved away from the point where you have this one-off thing called budget consultation to ongoing engagements with stakeholders.”
The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Member of Parliament said some of those engagements are through structured mechanisms and ad hoc meetings.
“We have very robust, structured mechanisms for receiving stakeholders’ input into the policy-making function. In fact, I believe that our policies are more widely consulted upon than in most other comparable political environments,” he insisted.
He made mention of the National Competitiveness Council, which brings together government, private sector and labour, and the Low Carbon Development Strategy multi-stakeholder steering committee.
“These mechanisms have, in fact, served us extremely well. You get, on an ongoing basis, feedback from stakeholder groups through the use of these mechanisms, and that feedback influences policies on an ongoing basis, and the same applies for literally every sector of government operations,” he explained.
“Once one understands that the budget is an amalgamation of government policy, and once one understands that policy making activities don’t revolve around the event that is called budget presentation, then I think one is better able to appreciate the continuity of the engagement with stakeholders,” he said.
Dr. Singh said there is the inter-parliamentary parties’ dialogue forum, which is a good mechanism, and they have met at a plenary level and at the committee level.
He recalled that they also met as the economic committee and identified priority areas for the committee to consider, and an attempt was also made to convene the budget discussions.
“But I think the opposition recognized, as we did, that by the time these inter-parliamentary parties’ dialogue committee started working, the budget process of course had already commenced.
“Effort was made to convene the meeting, and like I said in a previous release, there were some difficulties with timing, and eventually we were able to meet, and I made it very clear that we are open to and we welcome any suggestions that the Opposition may have,” Dr. Singh said.
“I explained this, some of those suggestions may work their way into budget 2012, and some of them may not; but even if those that cannot or could not have worked their way into 2012, didn’t, they will still be suggestions and priorities identified by the Opposition for future consideration,” he went on.
“I made the point that I still felt it was a worthwhile exercise, and I emphasised our willingness as a government to receive any submissions or representations that the opposition parties wish to make, and I made that point very clear and that continues to be our position,” he assured.
Dr. Singh said the debate will also present another opportunity for the Opposition to share their thoughts, stating, “But I will emphasise our continued willingness as a government to receive their views.”