Parliament Adopts 2018 Budget

TIRANA, November 17

The Albanian Parliament adopted in principle the draft budget 2018 totaling around € 3.7 billion on Thursday at the end of a 16-hour long session. In the meantime, the Parliament also adopted the six draft/laws of the fiscal package that will be implemented during 2018. The Albanian government plans to spend Euro 3.7 billion during 2018. The major part of the budget will be allocated for social protection. The government will spend Euro 1.1 billion on pensions, social assistance programs, and other schemes for vulnerable strata.
The second sector in terms of public expenditures will be health. Over Euro, 365 million will be allocated for the health system during 2018 and they will include public hospital spending, concession payments and reimbursement of medicaments.
Further on, Euro 340 million will be allocated on economic issues and Euro 307 million of education and other imperative sectors.
Special importance will be paid to public order and safety, a sector that during 2018 will receive Euro 215 million. The government will spend some €87 million on military expenditures that account for 0.8 percent of the state budget.
Previously, the Governor of the Bank of Albania (BoA) Gent Sejko declared during a hearing session on the draft budget 2018 that it will further foster the macroeconomic balance and to build investor’s trust in the Albanian economy.

News Source: parlament.al, TCh

Photo Credit: Creative Commons