Budget Department

Introduction

The government?s vision for Afghanistan is a prosperous nation where citizens enjoy security of person and property.  In this environment, ordinary Afghan women and men can dream of a better life for their children than they have now. The funding and programs contained in the national budget are designed to lay the foundations for this.

The Budget Concept

The resources available to Afghanistan are limited.  The allocation of these resources needs to be coordinated to ensure that they are directed to their highest priority.  To do this, all available resources need to be reflected in the budget.  Difficult choices have to be made between competing demands, and trade-offs between different options need to be considered.  Through a coordinated budget process the government can choose the most important projects and activities from among all the competing priorities.  In this way the budget is the central tool of policymaking.

The Budget Process

• Ensures all competing priorities are considered together and resources are allocated to the most important areas

• Ensures that the overall investment program meets the national priorities

• Forces government ministers who usually focus on their area of responsibility to take a more comprehensive approach, and to evaluate their programs against the programs of other ministers

• Coordinates the development activities of foreign governments

Within the structure of the government, individual ministers are given the responsibility by the government to deliver their programs.  They are also accountable to the Afghan people, their colleagues in the government,  and to the international community for their performance and the delivery of the investment program.

The 1382 Budget

The overall budget is comprised of the Development Budget and the Ordinary Budget. In 1382, the Government estimates:

• Expenditure of US$1.7bn for the Development Budget, rising to US$2.6bn in 1383 and US$3.6bn in 1384

• Revenue and Expenditures of 24.75 billion Afghani for the Ordinary Budget

Ordinary budget expenditures are supported by the Government?s own domestic revenues and by foreign governments.

The Ordinary Budget

Accounts in Afghani billion

Summary of the Ordinary Budget Expenditures

Total planned expenditures for the Ordinary Budget are 24.75 billion Afghani, equivalent to US$550 million.

Most Ministries will be kept near their spending levels of
last year with the main increases for:

• Additional teachers and school support costs

• Increasing the capacity of the Ministry of Public Health

• Providing temporary sustaining funds for non-demobilized soldiers in the Ministry of Defense

• Improving the level of the assistance payments to martyrs and the disabled.

• Targeted civil service reform, to increase the pay for employees in ministries and institutions which undergo reform to improve their productivity and functioning

• Providing some improvements in employee support costs

The following Chart shows the ordinary budget by the main National Development Programs.

Table 2-Ordinary Budget Expenditures by Ministry

The Development Budget

The Development Budget focuses on the three pillars that underpin the creation of a prosperous society

• Pillar One: Human and Social Capital

• Pillar Two: Physical and Natural Capital

• Pillar Three: Rule of Law and Security

Each of the three pillars contains development expenditure proposals across the Government?s national programs.

Table 1: Development Budget Programs 

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