399b afs budget for FY-1398 approved

Monitoring Desk

KABUL: The Wolesi Jirga or lower house of the Parliament on Monday approved the national budget for fiscal year 1398 with a total outlay of 399 billion afghanis, including 124b afghanis for development.

The budget plan for Afghan solar year 1398 includes 275 billion afghanis for general spending and 124 billion afghanis for development purposes — 12% up compared to the last year’s budget plan.

The last 1397 fiscal year’s budget plan included 267 billion afghanis for general and more than 90 billion afghanis for development affairs. The budget plan for 1398 fiscal year was presented to the Wolesi Jirga for approval on November 28.

Ministry of Finance officials say the budget plan has been prepared as per facts and priorities of the government and projects like electricity transfer, developing the energy sector, constructing government structures, railways and others have been considered in the draft.

According to the ministry, a major part of the budget is allocated to the security sector, infrastructure, education, governance, agriculture and urban development.

It says 188 billion afghanis of the budget would come from domestic revenues and the rest from foreign aid.

The ministry says that 61 billion afghanis of the development budget is optional and 63 billion afghanis non-optional. In Monday’s Wolesi Jirga session, 136 lawmakers were present and only seven of them voted against the budget plan and the rest endorsed it. (Pajhwok)