The Government of Liberia through the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP) has submitted the draft recast budget for Fiscal Year 2024 to the Liberian Legislature. According to a MFDP release dated Friday, August 16, 2024, the draft budget, totaling US$721.5 million, was presented to the Speaker of the House and to the Senate through the office of the Vice President on August 16, 2024.
Presenting the draft budget, the Acting Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Anthony G. Myers, informed the Vice President and the Speaker in separate submissions that, “on behalf of President Joseph N. Boakai, the budget is informed by its performance during half a year.”
“It is my distinguished honor to present the draft recast budget for FY 2024. This recast is informed by the budget’s performance over the first six months of the year, addressing revenue outcomes and prioritizing critical expenditures for the country,” Minister Myers said.
Minister Myers: “We thought we needed to first rebalance the budget in order to avoid budget shortfalls and secondly to protect critical expenditure lines that are key national priorities.” For his part, Liberia’s Vice President and President of the Senate Jeremiah Kpan Koung thanked the MFDP’s team for the submission and assured them that he would work with the Senate to act on it.
Also speaking, House Speaker Cllr. J. Fonati Koffa acknowledged the submission, saying, “We have received this communication on behalf of the President and have made several notations regarding its acceptance.
Speaker Koffa said the Legislature will establish a committee to investigate allegations of budget tampering. He named Representative Robert Wogbeh, who he said will chair that committee, along with Representative Emmanuel Dahn as co-chair, among others.
According to Speaker Koffa, this constituted committee aims to address and resolve any concerns related to the recently passed budget, stressing the importance of additional documentation. “We expect to receive various reports, including outturns, off-budget expenditures and related processes. All necessary expenditure lines, revenue forecasts, and other pertinent reports should be presented to the Ways and Means Committee,” Speaker Koffa said.
He advised the senior management team at the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning to send all related documents to the Legislature promptly to facilitate a thorough review and ensure the completion of the process.
