ST GEORGE’S, Grenada – Finance Minister Gregory Bowen confirmed he will be presenting the 2022 Budget or Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure on November 26.
He is expected to give more details of the plans and policies presented by Governor-General Dame Cecile La Grenade when she presented the traditional Throne Speech during the ceremonial opening of the Fifth Session of the Tenth Parliament, in October.
Government held several stakeholder consultations as part of the process of preparing the budget which is being presented under the theme, ‘Towards Vision 2035: Protecting Lives, Safeguarding Livelihoods, and Investing for Growth and Resilience’.
This will be Bowen’s second budget presentation since he was appointed Finance Minister in October 2020. Previously, Prime Minister Dr Keith Mitchell held that post.
During her Throne Speech, Dame Cecile informed the nation that Government’s framework for policy implementation remained within the 2020-2035 National Sustainable Development Plan (NSDP) which had a vision for the island to be a resilient and prosperous nation, with a conscious and caring citizenry, promoting human dignity, and realising its full potential through sustainable economic, social, and environmental progress for all.
The priorities for the next three years, she said, were set out in the Medium-Term Action Plan 2022 – 2024, which drews on the NSDP: “The rolling three-year Medium-Term Action Plans (MTAPs) will be the vehicles through which the NSDP is implemented. The agenda for 2022 will also be informed by the recommendations of the Cabinet-appointed Economic Taskforce as well as input from broader stakeholder consultations.”
She also said that Government would continue to act decisively to protect the lives of every citizen as the world enforced various initiatives to combat the effects of COVID-19. (CMC)
