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Oman’s government has called on ministries to slow projects and identify priority spending in their search for the largest budget deficit among The Persian Gulf economies.
In a directive to ministries prior to the preparation of the country’s budget for 2021, the Sultanate’s Ministry of Finance asked government agencies to exceed the spending limits set out in this year’s revised budget.
The purpose is to “prioritize the delivery of critical projects that serve economic and social objectives while slowing down non-essential projects and prioritizing the execution of completed projects,” according to a consultant published on the Finance Department website.
Considered the highest among the economies of the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries even before the virus outbreak and the oil crisis, Oman is on track to register its largest budget deficit since 2016, estimated this year at 16.9% of gross domestic product through the International. Monetary Fund. Oman’s sovereign score dropped twice in 2020 through Moody’s Investors Service.
To ease fiscal pressures this year, Oman cut budget spending and announced liquidity to alleviate the impact of Covid-19. He also discussed the option of monetary assistance from wealthier neighbors, other people familiar with the issue told Bloomberg.
Departments were asked to work together between the public and staff sectors to make monetary gains. The Ministry of Finance also noted that the expenditure deserves to be aimed at providing citizens with essential facilities such as health, education and social protection, according to the statement.
Oman aims to reduce the deficit in the context of “exceptional economic circumstances” of the pandemic and low oil prices, he said. This requires “continuous measures for monetary stability and sustainability”.
– With Abeer Abu Omar