Supplementary Budget Funnels More Funds to Vulnerable Groups  

By Lagi Keresoma

APIA, SAMOA – 22 DECEMBER 2022: The 2022/2023 Supplementary Budget of $13 million has funnelled more funds into the Pension Scheme and Disability benefits.

In tabling the first Supplementary 2022/2023 on Tuesday, the Minister for Finance, Mulipola Anarosa Molio’o said key policy items are aimed at assisting citizens especially the vulnerable groups in dealing with current and anticipated inflationary pressures.

Benefactors of the additional funds

• Pension benefits–$150 – This top-up will be disbursed in the last quarter ($50 per month) of the financial year for the 11,320 recipients of the Government Senior Citizens’ Benefit Scheme;
• Disability benefits – $100 – There will also be a $50 top up for the months of April and May in the last quarter of the financial year for the 2,017 recipients of the Government of Samoa’s Disability Benefit Scheme.
• The Samoa National Provident Fund to implement a 2% special interim dividend for pay out on the 23^rdJanuary 2023.

Mulipola pointed out that the Government has rolled out socio-economic policies targeting businesses and communities to assist with recovery of the economy. These include:

• Disability benefits;
• Combating non-communicable diseases;
• Eliminating violence against women;
• Tourism revival Assistance;
• Businesses recovery Assistance; and
• District Development Program.

In her budget address in June, she noted many “economic developments on the global front that could impact the country’s recovery, primarily the threats of rising global prices pushed up by the fuel and food prices.”

“It is anticipated that if the Government of Samoa does not move to address this now, it could affect our projections for the end of the fiscal year, and this is the basis for much of the First Supplementary for the current fiscal year,” said Mulipola.

She also noted the success in the implementation of policies including opening of borders, managing and controlling COVID-19 through awareness programs and continued efforts to stimulate economic activities.

The overall effect of the First Supplementary budget will shift the projected budget deficit to 3.2% of GDP from the 3.5% as announced in the Main Estimates. This decrease in the deficit is indicative of on-going efforts by the Government to closely monitor existing appropriations with the sole intention of prudent financial management.

First supplementary budget estimates:
The key components of the first supplementary budget 2022/2023 of aggregate expenditures under the $13,953,091 are:

• $6,600,000 from additional revenues;
• $1,686,847 from additional grant financing to new additional development projects;
• $7,732,878 from reallocations of existing appropriations.

The additional revenues under this budget amounts to $6,600,000 which was redirected from the:

• Ministry of Finance – $1,400,000,
• Ministry of Customs & Revenue – $3,700,000 and
• Ministry for Public Enterprises – $1,500,000

Additional General Budget Support
There are additional budget support from the Government of Australia and the Asian Development Bank to support targeted measures to counter the shock of increasing imported inflation and to help reduce the overall budget deficit.

Total new budget supports of $44,060,000 are demarcated as follows:

1. AUD$20,000,000 grant from the Government of Australia which is equivalent to SAT$36,000,000;
2. USD$3,100,000 concessional loan from the Asian Development Bank which is equivalent to SAT$8,060,000. This support is the remaining portion of a standby facility sourced from the Pacific Disaster Resilience Facility approved for Samoa in 2017 (when it was entitled to 50% grants and 50% concessional loans from the Asian Development Fund), with the grant component released in April 2020 towards the covid-19 pandemic response.

The year 2022 marks the 60th Anniversary of Samoa’s independence with a yearlong celebration that kick started in June 2022 and to conclude in June 2023.