South Sudan cabinet passes about 290 billion SSP budget

South Sudan’s Minister of Information Michael Makuei Lueth (radiotamazuj.org)

The South Sudan cabinet Friday ultimately passed a 287.04 billion South Sudanese Pounds budget for the fiscal year 2021/2022.

The government says the budget estimates will be obtained from the oil and non-oil revenues including grants from other countries.

Speaking to journalists after the cabinet meeting chaired by President Salva Kiir on Friday, South Sudan’s Minister of Information Michael Makuei Lueth said: "This budget includes the revenues that will be generated from the oil and revenue that will be generated from non-oil plus grants that we will get from some of the countries.”

Makuei says the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning is expected to table the draft budget before the Transitional Legislative Assembly for endorsement.

“This budget was discussed and passed with some amendments in the figures, and the Minister of Finance and Planning was directed to present the bill to the Transitional Legislative Assembly for consideration,” he added. 

According to the law, the budget is supposed to be submitted to the national legislature no later than the 15th of May of each financial year, which runs from 1 July to 30 June each year. However, due to a lack of a legitimate parliament, the process did not take place for the past two years.  

In July, the Council of Ministers was presented with an estimated swollen budget of about 500 billion which was not approved.