Antigua & Barbuda: PM Browne presents Budget 2022 worth $1.64 billion

Prime Minister of Antigua & Barbuda Gaston Browne, who also holds the position of Finance Minister, presented the Budget worth EC 1.64 Billion dollars in the House of Representatives, announcing that no new taxes are proposed this year.

In 2022, the budget allocation amount has been increased by 9 percent compared to the previous one, which was EC 1.51 billion.

PM Browne has stated that the Budget of fiscal 2022-2023 will strengthen the economy of the country and help in achieving the annual growth rate of 8 percent or more.

Below are the amounts allotted to different sectors:

• This year, the government of Barbuda has allocated the highest budget to the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. The ministry received $154.8 million.
• The Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment get $114.1 million.
• The Office of the Attorney General, Ministry of Justice & Legal Affairs, Public Safety and Labour receives $104.4 million.
• The Ministry of Works is allocated $87.5 million in Budget 2022 to manage and maintain public infrastructure.
• The allocation for the Ministry of Tourism and Economic Development is $25.6 million.
• The Ministry of Information, Broadcasting, Telecommunications, & Information Technology is allocated $16.4 million.
• Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries & Barbuda Affairs gets $17.5 million.
• Ministry of Civil Aviation, Energy & Transportation receives $9.5 million.
• The Ministry of Housing, Lands and Urban Renewal is allocated $5.7 million.
• The allocation to Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Immigration is $37.7 million.
• The Ministry of Social Transformation, Human Resource Development, and Blue Economy receive $26.8 million in the 2022 Budget.
• The newly added Ministry of Creative Industries and Innovations gets $10.4 million.
• The Ministry of Finance, Corporate Governance and Public-Private Partnerships is allocated $115.7 million.
• The Finance Ministry has also included Barbuda Council for the 2022 Budget, receiving $6.5 million.
• The Prime Minister Office is allocated $10.4 million and for the Prime Minister’s Scholarship Programme, $15 million have been allocated.

While presenting the budget, Prime Minister Browne said that the work of the government wage negotiation team would be completed this year and after the completion of the task, public servants will witness a hike in the pay.