Latest news with #governmentexpenditure
Zawya
09-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
South Africa: Public Service Committee Welcomes Treasury Reviews, Urges Swift Action to Professionalise and Clean Up Government
The Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration today welcomed the announcement by the Minister of Finance, Mr Enoch Godongwana, to institute three critical spending reviews aimed at improving the efficiency, integrity and developmental impact of government expenditure. The reviews, announced during the minister's budget vote debate, will focus on standardising the remuneration of executives and board members of public entities, auditing and eliminating ghost workers and investigating the persistent underspending and delivery failures associated with infrastructure conditional grants at the provincial and municipal levels. The Chairperson of the committee, Mr Jan de Villiers, said these reviews are not only welcome but long overdue. They echo the committee's consistent calls for a professionalised public service, one that is results-based, provides value for public money, and adopts a zero-tolerance approach to corruption, waste and political patronage. 'We support the development of a standardised remuneration framework for public entity executives and board members. Salaries must be fair, transparent and directly linked to the entity's mandate, complexity and performance. There can be no justification for exorbitant pay packages where service delivery is in crisis or entities are failing,' said Mr de Villiers. On the issue of ghost workers, the Chairperson reaffirmed the committee's view that this is not a minor administrative flaw but a form of organised, systemic corruption that siphons off public funds and undermines trust in the state. 'These are not invisible names on paper – these are real funds stolen from the public. The committee calls for these audits to lead to consequences. We want to see prosecutions, dismissals and systemic reform. The committee will continue to monitor this process closely, and a joint oversight meeting with Treasury and the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) is scheduled for the third quarter of 2025,' he said. The committee also welcomed broader government efforts to professionalise the state, including the digitisation of human resource and payroll systems, the introduction of lifestyle audits and the rollout of skills audits within departments. This followed a briefing by the DPSA and the National School of Government this morning on government's progress in digitising the public service and aligning training and upskilling with departmental needs. 'The creation of a professional, merit-based and non-partisan public service is both constitutionally mandated and essential to improving service delivery for all South Africans. Skills audits are particularly critical as they allow us to assess whether departments are staffed appropriately and whether officials have the qualifications and competencies needed to fulfil their mandates,' said Mr de Villiers. Responding to this morning's briefing, the Chairperson said digitisation and upskilling will help empower officials and drive improved service delivery, particularly in under-resourced areas. 'We must know not just who is employed in the public service, but whether they are fit for purpose. Skills audits, alongside digital transformation and standardised pay, create an opportunity to reconfigure departments to meet the needs of the public better. Where upskilling is required, it must be supported. Where restructuring is needed, it must be done responsibly,' he said. The committee remains committed to actively overseeing these reviews, focusing on results rather than rhetoric. We are planning a joint meeting with the Department of Public Service and Administration and National Treasury in the third quarter of 2025 to obtain further updates, including a detailed progress update on the ghost worker audit, implementation of lifestyle audits and alignment between performance and pay in the public sector, as well as consequence management for those involved in fraud and maladministration. 'We will not allow these reviews to become another policy gesture. They must be executed with urgency, rigour and public accountability,' the Chairperson said. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Republic of South Africa: The Parliament.
Arabian Business
04-06-2025
- Business
- Arabian Business
Qatar posts $138m budget deficit in Q1 2025
Qatar recorded a budget deficit of QR500m ($138m) in the first quarter of 2025, according to data released by the Ministry of Finance (MoF). The deficit, which covers the months of January through March, was financed through debt instruments, the ministry confirmed via its official statement on social media platform X. The total revenues for Q1 2025 stood at QR49.4bn ($13.56bn), marking a 7.5 per cent decrease compared to the same period in 2024. Breaking down the revenue: Oil and gas revenues amounted to QR 42.5bn ($11.68bn) Non-oil revenues contributed QR 6.9bn ($1.9bn) On the expenditure side, Qatar spent QR49.9bn ($13.7bn) in Q1 2025, reflecting a 2.8 per cent year-on-year decrease. Spending was distributed across key categories: Salaries and wages: QR16.9bn ($4.64bn) Current expenditures: QR18.5bn ($5.08bn) Major capital expenditures: QR13.1bn ($3.59bn) Minor capital expenditures: QR 1.2bn ($330m) Qatar economy The MoF also reported that government procurement contracts during Q1 2025 totalled QR6.4bn ($1.76bn). Notably, contracts awarded to foreign firms reached QR1.5bn ($412m) — a 50 per cent surge compared to Q1 2024, underscoring Qatar's expanding engagement with international partners. Among sectors leading economic activity based on the Business Activity Index were: Municipality and environment Health Energy
Reuters
30-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Indian government's FY25 fiscal deficit in line with projection
MUMBAI, May 30 (Reuters) - India's fiscal deficit (INFISC=ECI), opens new tab for 2024-25 was 4.8% of the gross domestic product (GDP), data released on Friday showed. The fiscal deficit was in line with the government's revised estimate. The Indian government aims to lower the fiscal deficit to 4.4% in the current fiscal year. India's fiscal year runs April through March. For the month of April, the fiscal deficit was 11.9% of the full-year budget estimate. ** Net tax receipts at 30.36 trillion rupees ($354.9 billion) compared with 23.27 trillion rupees in the previous year ** Non-tax revenue at 5.38 trillion rupees compared to 4.02 trillion rupees in the previous year ** Total government expenditure at 46.56 trillion rupees compared to 44.43 trillion rupees in the previous year ** Capital expenditure, or spending on building physical infrastructure, was 10.52 trillion rupees, against 9.49 trillion rupees in the previous year ($1 = 85.5370 Indian rupees)
