MTDP enablers get 10% increase

THE government’s key medium term development plan (MTDP) enablers have increased by 10% to K13 billion in the 2013 Budget.
Its K2.6 billion overall deficit is expected to continue over the next two years and should reach a surplus by 2017.
However, the budget had seen an increase in the development and capital funding for higher priority programmes in the MTDP enabling areas­.
In the 2013 Budget, the key enablers received K7.584 billion compared with K5.026 billion this year.
By priority enablers, education received K2.3 billion, health K1.3 billion, infrastructure K2.6 billion, law and order K1.1 billion and lands K281 million, bringing the total to K7.6 billion.
Meanwhile, the non-MTDP enablers received K3.6 billion.
Access to quality primary and secondary education through the 2013 Budget is K857.9 million, which includes K50 million funding to cover Grades 11 and 12.
This included a subsidy of K652 million – K30 million for school curriculum materials, K22.2 million for secon­dary schools science equipment, K18.7 million for community school ope­rations (NCD), K11 million for examinations and K10.5 million for national high school operations.
Teachers’ salaries increased by K100 million, from K605.7 million in 2012 to K706.5 million in 2013 and basic education function grants increased to K76.6 million from K59.5 million.
In the higher and technical education, there was an increase from K118.2 million to K120.8 million, inclu­ding K33.2 million in the Office of Higher Education funding for Tesas and K6.5 million for scholarships.
There was a net increase of K2.5 million to universities for salaries and K3.5 million for the University of PNG debt servicing.
A total of K199.4 million is allocated to the transport sector to connect rural populations to market and services, while K169.6 million went to works for goods and service.
This included K96 million under works for roads.
The health sector will receive K719.2 million (K646 million in 2012) for goods and services and K69.5 million for sa­laries, while the hospitals get K427.6 million.
Law, order and justice improvement will receive K721.7 million, a reduction from the K860.6 million allocation in 2012 due to the one-off fun­ding for the 2012 elections.

It was also revealed that the government debt was expected to increase by 74% by 2017, with the majority occurring in 2013 and 2014.