Minister for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Hussein Mwinyi
By Dickson Ng`hily
The National Assembly has approved the 753.85bn/- budget estimates presented by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare for the fiscal year 2013/2014 but a host of MPs warned against large donor dependency nature of the budget.
“About 471.3bn/- is allotted for development projects … at least 37bn/- will be contributed by the government and 435.2bn/- is expected to come from our development partners,” explained Minister for Health and Social Welfare Dr Hussein Mwinyi. It is those enormous donor dependant estimates that stirred the MPs.
Dr Mwinyi tabled his Ministry’s budget on Wednesday, set to cater for both recurrent and development expenditure. Of the estimated funds, 282.6bn/- would furnish the recurrent expenditure and the 471.3bn/- will go into the ministry’s development expenditure.
“At least 112.72bn/- has been allocated for Other Charges (OC) … salaries represent 169.84bn/- out of which, 36.74bn/- is for the Headquarters and the rest for the institutions, organisations and agencies working under the ministry,” the Minister expounded.
As part of its revenue collection, his ministry, is set to collect at least 56bn/- of which 50.34bn/- would be through institutions that work under the ministry’s supervision while about 5.62bn/- would be obtained from the ministry’s headquarters.
“This is more than the 2012/2013 revenue collection estimates that were 30.6bn/- of which 88 per cent was collected … in the same year we were allocated at least 298.2bn/- for recurrent expenditure and by April 30, this year we had been given 222.7bn.- equivalent to 74.6 percent,” he reported.
But, on behalf of the chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Social Services, a member of the committee, Ali Haji, expressed displeasure with the Ministry’s revenue collection arguing that the Ministry’s budget is not enough to cater for the health sector as it is required by the Abuja resolution that would have member states of the Africa Union (AU) allocate 15 per cent of the total government’s budget to the health sector.
“The budget does not reflect the Abuja resolution…in fact, for the past three years the budget has not reflected the Abuja…,” Dr Antony Mbassa, the opposition spokesperson in the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare claimed and pointed out that for 2010/2011 only 12 per cent of the total budgets was allocated to the health sector and in the fiscal year 2011/2012 and 2012/2013 the health budget descended to a low 10.4 per cent.
According to the MP, although in the financial year 2013/2014, the Ministry’s budget ‘seems’ to have increased from last year’s 576bn/- to 748bn/- this year, but despite the 29.9 percent increase, still, the budget heavily dependent on donor funds.
Further, the committee is also displeased with fund disbursement from the treasury.
“The committee is not happy with flow of funds from the treasury, it takes too long to disburse the money … 256.6bn/- equivalent to 44.1 per cent is yet to be issued to the Ministry. It is our hope that the money will be sent before June 30th,” he asserted.
“The government has allocated only 36bn/- for development projects from its own sources yet at least 435bn/- is expected to be derived from donors…and if the donors withdraw, then the projects will not be executed,” he warned.
“It is sad that about 90 per cent of the funds needed for development projects will be supplied by donor funds…depending on donor fund for development projects should be discouraged as when they fail to disburse funds then the projects aren’t implemented,” the MP cautioned.
According to Haji, in the fiscal year 2012/2013, funds for development projects expected from donors was 264.30bn/- but up to March this year, only 44.5 per cent of the money expected had been received.
Winding up, the Minister for Health and social welfare pledged to take into consideration all the presented comments promising to ‘work hard’ to meet the set targets.
SOURCE:
THE GUARDIAN
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