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The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (MoFED)
has approved in the first week of March 2008 more
than half of the supplementary budget request made
by the Ethiopian Roads Authority (ERA). Final
decision, however, is pending after the issue was
tabled to the Council of Ministers for endorsement
this week, sources disclosed.
ERA has been granted 8.8 billion Br budget for
fiscal year 2007-08, one of the largest portions, in
order to finance 190 federal road projects. Although
this constituted close to 20pc the federal budget
for the fiscal year, it was 6.4 billion Br the
government had committed to pay. Nevertheless, ERA’s
General Manager, Zaid W. Gabriel, wrote a letter -
on February 14, 2008 - to Sufian Ahmed, minister of
Finance and Economic Development, requesting for a
supplementary budget of 2.5 billion Br, over by a
billion Birr from what it had requested in
additional budget last year.
Following recommendations from the Ministry’s
department responsible for construction sector,
Minister Sufian has agreed to award ERA with 1.7
billion Br in supplementary budget. The proposal
will be sent to Parliament after it is approved by
the Council; this will be the first resolution to
Parliament on request for supplementary budget
because the one billion Birr for ERA comes not from
the 43.9 billion Br federal budget for the fiscal
year, according to a source at the Ministry. Close
to 700 million Br would come from various
compensation payments and reserve budget.
Managers at ERA are hopeful that Parliament will
approve the supplementary budget swiftly as it has
discussed about ERA’s projects at the beginning of
the budget year, sources told Fortune.
Experts attribute ERA’s need for additional budget
to its positive performance this year; ERA’s first
half performance report during the fiscal year shows
a completion of 87pc in its plan to rehabilitate
602Km of paved roads, while it carried out 45pc of
seasonal repairs from the 316Kms it originally set
out to repair. The Authority has undertaken 95pc of
the 6,873Km it had initially embarked upon.
This is part of what the federal government, in its
five-year development plan, has embarked on the
rehabilitation of 4,896Km trunk roads, the
construction of 2,775Km new trunk roads and major
repairs on 5,3600Km roads. The plan in total
requires 37.2 billion Br, of which 40pc is expected
to be covered by the government.
The Authority looks ahead to finalize 90pc of the
projects it plans for the fiscal year, according to
an official at the Ministry of Works and Urban
Development (MoWUD).
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