Versión Español
EspañolAfter receiving the financial reports of this year’s first trimester, Guatemalan President Otto Pérez Molina has announced in a cabinet meeting that he will make cuts to the budget in his governing body, due to insufficient resources in the fiscal till. The vice-minister of finance, Edwin Martínez, explained the decision: “We are tight, because public agencies have requested more than what we have available. All ministries want to get their programs underway; if we give them what they are demanding, we will have a deficit.”
In this regard, the allocated funds to public entities during 2014 first trimester were determined according to the monthly income that the Superintendency of Tributary Administration collected, and the placement of Treasury bonds. Taking into account these limitations, the government of Guatemala has prioritized certain areas such as the payment of the public debt, public services, and the paychecks of government employees.
Martínez also affirmed the importance of tax collection as a means to increase the financing of public agencies: “As long as we have a higher tax collection, we can allocate more funds to other expenses.”
In addition, Guatemala’s head of state informed that every two months, the Ministry of Finance will compare the income with the ministries’ demands for public spending to anticipate their needs and priorities, just in case they don’t have sufficient funds available.
Source: Prensa Libre.
