Uganda to finance 75 pct of its 2012/13 national budget

THE Ugandan government announced on Thursday that it will finance 75 percent of its national budget for the financial year 2012/13, a move likely to reduce the country’s foreign aid dependency.Maria Kiwanuka, the minister of finance while reading the 2012/ 13 national budget said that the total amount of money needed to finance the budget is estimate at 11,157 billion shillings (4.48 billion U.S. dollars).“Domestically mobilized resources, including tax collections and domestic borrowing will finance about 75 percent of the budget during 2012/13, whilst 25 percent will be provided by development partners. This represents a rise in domestic financing of our budget,” she said.Revenue collections for the next financial year which starts July 1 are projected at 7,251 billion shillings (2.9 billion dollars) while total debt service including interest payments is projected to amount to 1,101 billion shillings (0.44 billion dollars). About 10,057 billion shillings (4 billion dollars) will be used to support economic and social development programs.She said the priority areas during the financial year include development of the transport and electricity infrastructure, followed by agriculture and tourism. She announced new tax measures that will be used to boost domestic revenue some of which include reinstatement of Value Added Tax on piped water, increase of taxes on gambling and spirits.

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Uganda to finance 75 pct of its 2012/13 national budget