The Law Proposal on the State Budget (SB) for the 2012 financial year was presented to the National Parliament on Wednesday, November 9, 2011, by the IV Constitutional Government.

The total appropriations budget is $ 1,763.4 billion U.S. dollars.

The appropriations budget, by category of expenditure, is as follows:

1 – $140,1 million U.S. dollars for Salaries and Wages;

2 – $344,7 million for Goods and Services, of which $30 million U.S. dollars are allocated to the  Human Capital Development Fund;

3 – $194,2 million U.S. dollars for Public Transferences;

4 – $30 million U.S. dollars for Minor Capital;

5 – $1,054.4 million in Capital Development, of which $746.2 million is allocated to the Infrastructure Fund, $52 million intended for Decentralized Development Programs I and II, and $200 million for the capitalization of the Timor-Leste Investment Company.

In the keynote address of the main ideas contained in the document, the Prime Minister noted that “The 2012 State Budget will be the first to reflect the development goals embodied in the Strategic Development Plan, launched last July.

The Strategic Development Plan, covering three crucial areas to the development of the Nation: social capital, infrastructure and economic development, was also informed by the valuable data from the 2010Census, which captured the real and objective picture of the population and that now transfor into sustainable development policies.

Investing in development means investing $1,763.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2012, in sustainable policies for the country, which will capitalize on the successes already achieved to date, putting Timor-Leste in the intended path”.

(To read the full speech by the Prime Minister, click here.)

After the presentation of the Prime Minister, the National Parliament’s Committee for Economy, Finance and Anti-Corruption presented its report and opinion on the Law Proposal on the State Budget for 2011, where several recommendations were made.

The presentation of the State Budget for the 2012 financial year took place a week after the Prime Minister justified the State’s General Accounts for 2010, also at the National Parliament,.

Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão guaranteed that: “The 2010 State Budget was executed in compliance with the targets we set for ourselves. We invested in infrastructure, social stability and in our private sector, key areas fundamental for national development.

This Government does not waste opportunities, investing in sustainable development with courage, to lift our People from poverty in the shortest possible time”.