Finance Bill : Senate Begins Scrutiny Today

Senators will today December 6, 2022 hold a general debate on the Finance Bill of the Republic of Cameroon for the 2023 fiscal year. The legal instrument was tabled yesterday December 5, 2022 during a plenary sitting chaired by the Senior Vice President of the Senate, Aboubakary Abdoulaye. Before the plenary sitting in the House Chambers, Senator Aboubakary Abdoulaye chaired the Chairman’s Conference in which the document was judged admissible to be tabled before Senators. 
The document of over 80-pages has already been adopted at the National Assembly and has been brought to Senators for a second scrutiny. The legal instrument has been drafted in accordance with the directives contained in the Circular on the preparation of the State Budget for the 2023 financial year issued by the President of the Republic on August 23, 2022. The proposed State Budget is balanced in revenue and expenditure at FCFA 6,345.1 billion as against FCFA 6,080.4 billion in 2022, representing an increase of FCFA 264.7 billion or 4.4 per cent. The budget takes into consideration several national and international aspects. 
At the national level, macroeconomic projections point to a 4.2 per cent growth rate compared to 3.7 per cent in 2022, despite the contraction of activity in the oil sector. Inflation is projected to be contained at three per cent as against 4.6 per cent in 2022, which is within the CEMAC convergence threshold. The legal instrument further states that the overall financial policy objective remains fiscal consolidation, with an overall Gross Domestic Product deficit of -0.9 per cent compared with -2 per cent in 2022, representing a 1.1 per cent reduction in deficit. 
Government’s action, according to the bill, will be geared towards consolidating economic recovery and accelera...