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Laos: Govt stresses transparent debt repayment
The roles of the Ministry of Planning and Investment and Ministry of Finance have been clearly defined to deal with government debt repayments, a senior official has confirmed.
The move is aimed to ensure debts are repaid in a transparent and accountable manner, minimising loopholes which could result in officials’ misappropriation.
Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Dr Kikeo Chanthabouly told Vientiane Times on Tuesday that the government is improving mechanisms to transparently pay debts.
From now on, the Ministry of Planning and Investment will be in charge of allocating and confirming a list of projects to be paid but the money will be given out by the Ministry of Finance.
Previously, the Ministry of Finance solely played the role of repaying debts owed to State investment projects.
“Our ministry will record which projects are completed and which projects are not and which projects should be given priority on the list for debt payments,” Dr Kikeo said. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Finance will still play the role of paying debts as a result of issuing bonds.
Last year, the government allocated 963 billion kip to pay the debts incurred by State investment projects.
In addition, during the fourth quarter of last year the government asked the National Assembly to approve an extra 700 billion kip for the payment of debts.
The Standing Committee of the National Assembly later approved 400 billion kip for the payment of debts owed to State investment projects and 300 billion kip allocated to pay for bonds.
The 400 billion kip allocated to pay State investment projects is being carried out by the Ministry of Planning and Investment while the Ministry of Finance is in charge of 300 billion kip for paying debts as a result of issuing bonds.
As of April, 245 billion kip out of 400 billion kip had been paid to 1,451 State investment projects, representing 61 percent of the total budget.
In the meantime, 85 percent of the 300 billion kip has been used to pay debts owed on the issuance of bonds.
Minister of Planning and Investment Dr Souphanh Keomixay said recently that debts owed to private companies who carried out State investment projects were as high as 13,118 billion kip.
Although the money paid will not meet the financial needs of all entrepreneurs who invested in State investment projects, the government is committed to making debt payments in a transparent manner and in line with financial principles.
The government is trying to address the debts for development projects which were approved by the National Assembly (NA).
Nevertheless, priority would be given to projects in which construction activities have been completed, according to the government’s recent report.
The move aims to enable the private companies to maintain their financial liquidity and stability, contributing to the continued growth of the Lao economy.
Source: http://www.vientianetimes.org.la/FreeContent/FreeConten_Govt_148.html