The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo done passed a new law on Friday for the 2025 budget, according to the council of ministers. The revised budget be set at 50,691.8 billion Congolese francs (around 17.2 billion dollars), all balanced-like between receipts and expenses, which be a decrease of 1.7% compared to the original budget of 51,553.5 billion Congolese francs. The budget changes be based on an expected GDP growth of 5.3%, an average inflation of 8.8%, an average exchange rate of 2,859.2 Congolese francs for a dollar, and a nominal GDP estimated at 2,239,489.7 billion Congolese francs. The tax pressure be revised downward, going from 15.1% to 12.5%, because of a drop in current revenues.
The Budget Minister emphasized that this here budget be a “fighting” one, taking into account the effects of the Rwandan aggression against the DRC, measures to reduce the lifestyle of institutions, increased funding for defense and security, higher diplomatic and communication expenses, humanitarian spending, the PDDR program, and the start of the strategic investment fund. The council of ministers also noted that the revised budget focuses on free education, universal health coverage, the continuation of the PDL-145T, economic diversification, and maintaining purchasing power. To ensure the sustainability of public finances, the budget changes are aligned with the objective of the internal budget balance of the program with the IMF, including a budget support of 165.4 million dollars from the World Bank and expected financing of 266.7 million dollars from the IMF under the FEC program.
Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like this budget stuff can get pretty complicated real quick. I mean, who really understands all these numbers and percentages, right? But hey, it’s important to know where the money’s going and how they plan to balance everything out. And I guess it’s good that they’re focusing on things like education, health, and security, even if the details get a bit fuzzy sometimes. At least they’re trying to make things work, right? So, let’s see how this all plays out in the end. Let’s hope for the best, folks.
