B’ville produces K254m budget

By LUKE KAMA
Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG) yesterday presented its K254 million 2018 Budget to Treasurer and Deputy Prime Minister Charles Abel.
ABG M inister for Finance and Treasury Robin Wilson said the Budget was framed in line with the national government’s policy of investments in tourism and agriculture. “The 2018 Budget for ABG has been prepared and framed around three major policy areas as approved by Bougainville executive council in March of 2017,” he said.
“This directs that the budget resource envelope to each policy sectors includes 40 per cent for the social sector, 30 per cent for economic sector and 30 per cent for governance sector.”
Wilson said the allocation of 30 per cent to the economic sector was the first of its kind for the ABG.
This is in line with national government policy to drive economic growth within the Autonomous Region of Bougainville.
“In previous ABG budgets, economic sector received a component of less than five per cent,” he said.
“We are improving it to 30 per cent in the 2018 Budget approved by the Bougainville Parliament on Dec 22 last year. “Our focus now is to grow our economic activities, to improve our internal revenues through the tourism, agriculture and mining sectors.”
Wilsonsaid the national government should release Budget funding to ABG in full for 2018.
“Last year, the Bougainville government had received less than 15 per cent of the total allocation for 2017 Budget from the national government,” he said.
“That has affected many of our intervention projects and programmes.
“We urge the national government, through the office of the Treasurer and the Deputy Prime Minister and the Prime Minister, to ensure funding allocated in the 2018 budget must be released in full to carry out important programmes and projects that we have.”