The Government of Rwanda is expected to spend an estimated Rwf4,658.4 billion (over Rwf4.6 trillion) in the next fiscal year (2022/2023), representing an increase of Rwf217.8 billion or 4.7 per cent compared to Rwf4,440.6 billion of the revised budget of the current fiscal year. 

The disclosure was made on Thursday, May 19 by Uzziel Ndagijimana, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, while presenting the 2022-2023 Budget Framework Paper, and the annual budget estimates to both chambers of Parliament.

While presenting the proposed financial plan to legislators, Ndagijimana said that the next financial year budget, which will start on July 1, 2022, will focus on the implementation of Government strategies meant to resuscitate the economy from the Covid-19 pandemic so that it reaches the pre-pandemic growth level.

It will also put an emphasis on continuing the implementation of the national strategy for transformation (NST1). This is a seven-year Government programme running from 2017 through 2024. 

On the sources of funding, Ndagijimana said that domestic resources will amount to Rwf2,654.9 billion, equivalent to 57% of the proposed budget.

Also, the budget will be supported by external financing, with grants totaling Rwf906.9 billion, while loans will amount to Rwf651.5 billion.

Overall, domestically mobilized resources plus the external loans which the country will repay, will account for 80.5 percent of the country’s proposed spending in 2022/2023.

"The projected activities in the 2022/2023 budget were selected based on their contribution to the achievement of the country’s set targets as planned for in the national strategy for transformation, and tackling the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said.

It is projected that Rwanda’s economy will grow by 6 percent in 2022 compared to 10.9 percent in 2021 which was registered as the country’s output started recovering from the pandemic-induced recession.

Commenting on the relatively marginal economic growth this year, Ndagijimana said that is attributed to the current global economic problems. These include the rising commodity prices globally, partly resulting from the Russia-Ukraine war impact.  

Also, it is to note that the country’s output contracted in 2020 – falling by 3.4 percent compared to 2019 – which made last year’s growth seem much higher.

"However, the strategies we devised will enable the economy to continue growing and reach 6.7 per cent in 2023 and 7 percent in 2024 and 2025,” he observed.