Western province passes K351 million budget for 2025

The Western Provincial Government has passed its K351.8m budget for 2025 fiscal year during its first assembly meeting held yesterday at the provincial headquarters in Daru.

The budget was K108.9m less from the 2024 budget of K460.6m.

The significant decrease in the budget projections was due to the exclusion of estimates for personnel emoluments and the WP Capacity Improvement Program, both of which are managed by National Government.

Other reductions were from roll over estimates and depletion of the ambitious estimates for Kroton Equity and other internal revenue heads including Mining royalties.

The estimate will comprise of K119.3 million from national government while FRPG internal revenue projection is expected to fetch about K232.5m totalling up to the budget in the Appropriation Bill.

Whilst presenting the 2025 FRPG Budget, governor Taboi Awi Yoto highlighted some major work that had progressed since 2023 to align with the national government’s development policies, plans and strategies including the construction of the FRPG Assembly House currently underway, Integrated Financial Management System roll-out in the province, Daru Town road rehabilitation, the Oriomo - Wipim - Morehead road which is continuing, Rumginae Nursing School Development and the Provincial Administration Office Complex Construction amongst others.

Mr. Yoto said the budget includes a detailed revenue collection strategy, an expenditure plan, and specific projects earmarked for funding. Each project is identified with a designated monetary amount and specifies the sources of revenue that will finance them.

"Once the money from that particular revenue source comes in we will allocate it straight to that particular project captured and that is how we have done the budget. Going forward this is how we will try to distribute revenue fairly to each LLGs and Districts across the province," he said.

Governor Yoto announced that once funding becomes available and accounts are open, the government will initiate its procedures to allocate resources and commence the awarding of contracts.

"The budget is actually project based and program based. We expect to collect K232m from within the province from our investments from GST and mining royalties apart from PSIP and PIP component," he said.

The K232m that would be collected will be utilized for various government programs, including funding for meetings of District Development Authorities (DDAs) and Local Level Governments (LLGs). Of this total amount, K89 million is earmarked specifically for infrastructure development.

Each area has been given a specific amount of money as follows: Economic Empowerment will get K37.7m, Health sector will receive K43.8m, K48.5m allocated for Education, the Law and Justice sector will have K23.6m, making up 64% of the budget, and Infrastructure grants have been set at K89 million.

Member for Delta Fly Agena Gamai said they will work coordially with the rencently outlined plan to ensure the budget meets its target.

"We will not be doing anything out of the plan and we have come to understand how our governor has set the plan and out of our DSIP and MROT2 that will be coming in we will be complimenting," he said.

Gamai said he would continue expanding the cocoa project which started in 2022 to empower locals in Delta Fly and involve themselves agriculture activities for self sustainence.

Middle Fly MP Maso Hewabi urged collaboration between the leaders of the province and locals to achieve their goal with significant results.

"The good side of the plan and the budget we had for this year is that we have a set of pillars togather and we are all budgeting towards that pillar and the programs,"he said.

Meantime, MP Hewabi expressed his satisfaction that the plan and budget are designed to benefit the people of Western Province.