As Ghanaians bid farewell to 2024, the atmosphere is electric with a cocktail of memories and optimism. The dawn of 2025 brings promises of a brighter future, but amidst the celebrations, a pressing concern lingers regarding the 2025 Mini-Budget.
The 2025 Mini-Budget, which should have been presented to Parliament in December 2024, remains unresolved, casting a shadow of uncertainty over the nation’s financial landscape. This delay raises critical questions about how the first quarter of the 2025 financial year will unfold, sparking concerns about potential consequences.
On behalf of the President, the Finance Minister is mandated by law to prepare and present the budget for the following year to Parliament at least a month before the end of the financial year. Typically, Parliament is expected to scrutinize and approve the budget before the year’s end. Once approved, the annual budget takes effect on January 1st of the following year, granting the government legislative approval to withdraw funds from public coffers to ensure smooth government operations, especially important in light of the 2025 Mini-Budget.
However, the law authorises temporary expenditures from the Consolidated Fund where it is apparent that a budget cannot be passed to take effect from the first day of the ensuing financial year. For instance, during a change of government, a Mini-Budget is to be prepared for the first quarter of the following year. This serves as a stopgap measure to ensure government operations continue uninterrupted until the full annual budget is passed. The process involves the presentation of the Mini-Budget to Parliament and a subsequent approval by Parliament through a resolution, which is simply a majority vote in favour of the budget.
Unfortunately, Finance Minister Dr. Mohamed Amin Adam missed the deadline to present the mini-budget to Parliament before they broke for Christmas. With Parliament set to reconvene tomorrow, January 2, 2025, many Ghanaians are worried about how the government will function until the mini-budget is approved. The delay has raised concerns about the potential impact on government operations and the country’s financial stability.
Legal Implications and Possible Actions
The delay in presenting the mini-budget has significant implications. Firstly, it must be understood that as of midnight yesterday, the 2024 budget ceased to be effective, as mandated by law. This means that, technically, the government is currently operating without a valid budget, and all eyes are on the 2025 Mini-Budget to resolve this.
However, there’s a crucial safety net. The law allows for the use of remaining funds from the previous year’s budget until January 31st of this year. This provision serves as a temporary financial lifeline, enabling the government to continue operating, although in a limited capacity, until a new budget is approved.
In practical terms, this means the government can still access unexpended funds from the just ended 2024 budget, specifically the balances remaining in the public funds, until the end of January. It’s crucial to note that only these unexpended funds can be utilized, not new allocations or withdrawals from other sources. If there are no remaining balances from the previous year’s budget, the government will not be able to access additional funds until a new budget is approved. Therefore, if the government continues to withdraw funds beyond the unexpended balances or without an approved budget, it would be in violation of the law.
However, it’s worth noting that Article 107 of the Constitution provides a potential safeguard. In the event that funds are withdrawn from the public funds without an approved budget, the expected 2025 Mini-Budget may retrospectively authorize such expenditure, to effectively regularize the withdrawal. This constitutional provision offers a possible outlet for the government to legitimize its actions, but its use would undoubtedly be subject to scrutiny.
There are however others who are relying on provisions in the Public Financial Management Act which says that “Each appropriation approved by Parliament shall cease to have effect at the close of the financial year in respect of which the appropriation was made” to take on government official that spends from the public coffers from today until a mini budget is presented to parliament and approved by the members of the legislature, especially if they can prove that the expenditure was made outside the unexpended balances, which underscores the urgent need to address the 2025 Mini-Budget.
