Finance Minister Dr. Mohamed Shafeeq has said that the government has halted spending on infrastructure development projects in order to prioritize budgeted projects.
The opposition alleges the government of stalling development projects. Meanwhile, official statistics also show low spending on Public Sector Infrastructure Program (PSIP) projects.
In response to questions from Adhadhu, Shafeeq said it is not accurate to state that development projects have been stopped and said that projects that have not been started are projects that do not have funding.
"There are some projects, for example, some land reclamation projects, which have an allocation of about MVR 5 million for the project. But it is estimated that it will cost three or four times more to run the project," he said.
According to the Finance Ministry's budget book, MVR 8.6 billion has been budgeted for 1,780 projects under the PSIP. Most of these are ongoing and contracted projects while 331 new projects are planned.
Planned expenditure on PSIP
- State budget - MVR 3.2 billion
- External borrowings - MVR 4.6 billion
- Grants - MVR 389.5 million
- Trust Fund - MVR 380.9 million
Although MVR 9 billion has been budgeted, the projects will cost MVR 12 billion if a good estimate is made, Shafeeq said.
Shafeeq said the projects that are currently underway are projects with secured funding and cash flow. Projects that have not yet started are projects that do not have enough funding and could cause a waste if launched now, he added.
He assured that no projects had been canceled and more projects will begin in the future. The government's expenditure in the first two months of this year was lower than its revenue due to the suspension of PSIP projects.
