Finance minister launches 2025 State budget in Fako tomorrow.

Louis Paul Motaze, Minister of Finance

The Minister of Finance, Louis Paul Motaze, is expected to launch the 2025 State budget in Fako Division, South West Region, tomorrow. A series of events have been programmed for Limbe and Buea.

The government expects to operate on a budget tentatively balanced at 7,317.7 billion FCFA, in 2025. The sum represents an increase of 39.6 billion FCFA, compared to the 2024 State budget.



While defending the State budget in Parliament, Minister Motaze had told Members of Parliament, MPs, that the national economy is projected to witness a slight growth this year, as compared to 2024. 

The minister had said the growth rate for 2024 hovered around 3.8%. He said the steam is expected to witness a significant shoot to 4.1% this year, due principally to expectations of improving performance by the country´s nonoil sector. 

He had stated that the non-oil sector is projected to grow this year by 4.3%; as against 4.1% in 2024 and 3.6% in 2023.

 

Declining oil output

The draft State budget Minister Motaze presented to Parliament also showed that oil production will continue to decline as the government strives to revamp the non-oil sector.

For 2025, he said the government projects oil output to contract by 1%. This, he said, is contrary to the projected growth rate of 2.6% for 2024, which never saw the light of day. 

On projected inflationary trend, government expects it to keep easing to settle at 4%, all through the year. Officials said these defeat fears that prompted government to project inflation to reach 5% in 2024.

 

State budget financing

According to the Minister of Finance, internally generated revenues and grants are projected to fetch the government 5,548.1 billion FCFA. This, he had said, represents an increase of 313.1 billion FCFA compared to 2024, when it fetched 5,235 billion FCFA, representing an increase of over six percent in relative terms.

Oil revenue, estimated at 734.8 billion FCFA, the minister had said in Parliament, witnessed a decrease of 66.8 billion FCFA. The minister attributed the decline to the drop in the world price per barrel of oil and currency depreciation of the FCFA against the United States Dollar, USD.

Total budget expenditure; (excluding the amortisation of debt principal), the Minister of Finance had also said, stands at 5,563.6 billion FCFA as against 5,280.3 billion FCFA, in 2024. This, he noted, represents an increase of 283.3 billion.

Minister Motaze had noted that these expenditures represent 76.7% of the State Budget. He had detailed them as follows: personnel expenditures, 1,586.6 billion FCFA; Goods and Services, 1,027.7 billion FCA; Transfers and Subsidies, 920.8 billion FCFA; interest on debt, 378.2 billion FCFA; and capital expenditure, 1,650.2billion FCFA.

 

Public Investment Budget

According to the minister, for the 2025 financial year, the Public Investment Budget, PIB, amounts to 1,863.1 billion FCFA. This is compared to 1,604.1 billion in 2024. He said this represents an increase of 259.0 billion in absolute terms and 16.1% in relative terms. 

He had stated that the PIB for 2025 accounts for 33,5% of total budget expenditure. With regard to the conditions of its equilibrium, the finance boss had said the 2025 budget shows an overall deficit of 107.8 billion FCFA; as against 137.9 billion in 2024.  

 

This story was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3338 of Tuesday January 14, 2025

 

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