With only two days to go before the Congress of the Republic votes on the total amount of the General Budget of the Nation for next year, according to what is scheduled in the legislative agenda for this week, the National Government continues to defend tooth and nail its financing bill proposal with which it hopes to raise the $12 billion it needs to cover its projected spending in 2025.
It should be noted that of the $523 billion proposed for next year, to the Casa de Nariño A good part of it would be missing, which varies depending on how you look at it, since for the Ministry of Finance it is only $12 billion, while authorities such as CARF or Fedesarrollo, maintain that it could be around $24 billion. This is without taking into account that the High Council of Fiscal Policy estimates the shortfall at $24.1 billion.
This is without taking into account the agreement signed last week with truckers and the fact that diesel will only go up $800 this year, which added a fiscal burden of at least $7 billion to the nation’s accounts. While many have said that to solve the problem of money that is intended to be spent but is not available, operating expenses must be cut, the objective to reduce would be investment.
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Planning Warning
In line with what has been said during the meetings with Congress to discuss The General Budget of the Nation, National Planning, again spoke out about the budget items that would be affected by a possible cut in these accounts and told the country that the $12 billion that will come from the financing law will be used for investment in the regions.
Alexander Lopez Maya
Senate Press
The director of this entity, Alexander López Maya, highlighted that the budget presented for 2025 reflects the national Government’s commitment to the sustainability of public finances, in strict compliance with the Fiscal Rule and all legal commitments of the State, with which they see no doubts regarding its execution.
“Although the country is experiencing macroeconomic and fiscal restrictions that have limited the allocation of investment resources for the next term, this Government is committed to guaranteeing a minimum of resources so that Colombia can advance towards social justice and the protection of life, materializing the transformations outlined in the Government Program and the National Development Plan 2022-2026,” he said.
He explained that the additional resources of $12 billion included in the budget are protected by Article 347 of the Political Constitution, which authorizes the Government to process a Financing Law to cover the projected expenses and which will allow financing a minimum of strategic investments that under another scenario would be underfunded, given the high inflexibility that currently exists in the budget programming process.
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“These rigidities are partly the result of decisions by previous governments.such as the debt acquired with the International Monetary Fund, the Fuel Price Stabilization Fund (FEPC), future terms, pandemic debts pending payment to the Health System, the tariff option, among many others that increase the pressure on the 2025 budget,” added Director López Maya.
Alerts to Congress
Sources who have been part of the conversations between the Ministry of Finance and the congressmen of the economic commissions told Portafolio that on several occasions, the Government’s warning has been that in the event that the financing law is not approved, the money that will be reviewed is the investment money.
Investment and investments.
Courtesy.
“It is important to mention that, given this fiscal reality, investment programming by 2025, a widespread effort was required by the sectors towards prioritization and efficiency of spending, but ensuring compliance with the provisions of Article 350 of the Constitution, which establishes the prioritization of social spending over other items,” says the DNP statement.
Because of this, they concluded by stating that “reducing the amount of investment would go against the constitutional mandate of including in the budget all expenses incurred by the National Government. In addition, it would compromise the prioritization of appropriations associated with social spending, intended to meet the basic needs of citizens.”
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Alexander López, director of the entity, concluded that “these decisions would go against the most vulnerable and against social transformations and productive in which the country must advance to make Colombia a power of life.”
