Finance Ministry to review revenue and expenditure targets

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June 15, 2016 10:05 AM

The minister is expected to review revenue and expenditure targets given prevailing economic trends as revenue targets require revision in line with increasing fuel prices on the international market.

Seth Terkper, Minister of Finance

Pulse Business sources at the Ministry of Finance have revealed that the Finance Minister, Seth Terkper is set to go to parliament for a review of the 2016 budget.

The ministry, in the 2016 budget, presented revenue targets based on an average oil price of 40 dollars per barrel, but oil prices have inched close to $50 currently and are expected to gain $20 more by the end of the year.

However, analysts say revenue targets may actually fall as government appears to be having challenges raising revenue on the bond market, judging from how bad the country’s first two GHC500 million domestic bonds issued by the Bank of Ghana on behalf of the ministry performed.

Government projected a revenue target of GHC38 billion and expenditure of GHC43 billion in 2016.

According to sources, projections like inflation targets, GDP growth rate and the fiscal deficits are the projections that are likely to be revised.

It is unclear if these targets will be revised upward or downwards, but with the IMF projecting a GDP growth rate of 4.5% which is lower than government’s 5.4%, industry players believe government will not meet the projected target.

On the other hand, unstable energy supply, one of the major reasons for a contraction in GDP growth over the past three years, appears to have been solved, prompting some sense of optimism in some business people.

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