Monrovia – Assistant Minister for Development Planning at the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning Benedict Kolubah claims that the current government inherited a budget of US$27 million for Public Sector Investment.
Report by: Varney Kelvin Sirleaf | LVL Fact Checker
Assistant Minister Kolubah made the claim when he was engaged in a radio debate with the Secretary General of the opposition Unity Party Amos Tweh on OK Fm on January 4, 2023.
Said Minister Kolubah: “The space on the budget was just for recurrent expenditure; we (the Weah government) pick up from a place where they (Sirleaf’s administration) only had US$27 million dollars for public sector investments”.
Local Voices Liberia sought to verify this claim by reviewing the allocations made in the approved 2017/2018 Fiscal Budget – the final budget of the Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s administration.
We found in Annex 4 of the 2017/18 National Budget, which contains all allocations made for public sector investment, the total amount allocated to Public Sector Investment was US$55, 280,287 (fifty-five million, two-hundred eighty thousand, two hundred eighty-seven United States Dollars).
Conclusion
A review of the Fiscal Year 2017/18 National Budget shows that US$55, 280, 287 was allocated to Public Sector Investment and not US$27 million as claimed by the Assistant Finance Minister.
Therefore, the claim made by Assistant Finance Minister for Development Planning that the current administration inherited an economy that had US$27 million in its budget for Public Sector Investment is incorrect.