Government's austerity scenarios are on the table of Abderrahmane Benkhalfa
الشروق أونلاين
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Finance ministry's headquarters. Photo: copyright
Finance and Budget Committee at the National People’s Council will soon hold a meeting with the new Finance Minister, Abderrahmane Benkhalfa, prepares to put forward a set of hot files that were frozen during the last period, and it comes to removing Algiers Square Market a month ago, and exchange offices and tourist grant, and the extent of applying the recommendations of the Finance Act 2015, as it will also consider the anticipated scenarios in front of Algerians after the drop of oil price.
Chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee at the parliament, Berrabeh Zebbar, told Echorouk that the financial situation of the country in the current changes imposed many questions about the fate of many projects that are expected to be effected by the current economic situation, and hot files that are not solved until now, such as Algiers Square Market and the fate of the exchange offices, and demands that call for increasing the tourism grant.
“Finance Committee would ask the new Finance Minister, Abderrahmane Benkhalfa, to provide clarifications regarding these files, and discuss the future perceptions with regard to financial changes and themes that will be included in the Supplementary Finance Act, in light of the talk about austerity measures.”
With regard to the Prime Minister, Abdelmalek Sellal’s statements about the terrible decline in exchange reserves, which level is expected to reach $ 9 billion by the end of 2019.
“Despite the courageous statements of Sellal, that have addressed the country’s economic situation with reality and which were far from rosy expects, but he did not provide any explicit statements about the scenarios that are waiting Algerians during this year, especially since a lot of questions began to mar on outstanding projects, frozen decisions and even supplementary finance law that has not been discussed yet at the government’s level. Sellal’s statements were frank and bold, and dealt with the situation as it is in reality.”
This comes at a time when the Prime Minister, Abdelmalek Sellal, statements are still sparking controversy, especially since many of the political parties ask for the identification of scenarios that await the Algerians in the context of low oil revenues, and the declining funds of what was formerly known as the wealth of the $ 200 billion, or exchange reserves that will reach only $ 9 billion at the wake of 4 years.
