While various public entities requested an increase of some $6,500 million to the general budget of the State for the year 2017 and the authorities decided to adjust only $1,544 million, experts point that this adjustment continues to be very high.
For those economists, the local authorities are making this budget of the 2017 taking as a fact that the Panamanian economy would grow next year above 6%, projection that, according to them, will not be possible due the economic situation facing the country.
Not achieving this estimated growth and implementing a bad budget will bring bout serious affectations to the country, especially to the social investment of the Government.
In accordance with information by the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), the budget of the State for the next year is fixed at 21 thousand 670 million dollars, i.e., 7.7% more than that of 2016 that was at 20 thousand 126 million.
The Minister of MEF, Dulcidio De La Guardia, stressed that this additional income in the budget of 2017 will be product of an increase in the tax revenue both by the Authority of Customs, by the General Directorate of Revenue (DGI) as well as the contributions by the new expanded Canal.
He also added that he has always been straightforward when stating that "Panama should dispose of those resources only that we could afford” and that with this budget is "prioritizing" the expenditure, since the entities asked for it to be adjusted above $6,000 million.
For Economist Juan Jované, the first error that the authorities are committing is fix the budget for 2017 based on the expectative that the economy will grow above 6%.
He added that this will be almost impossible to achieve, having into account that in the first semester of this year 2016 the economic growth that the country showed is around 4.2% and 4.5%.
Jované noted that another point that confirms that Panama will not grow to that forecast rhythm is the slowdown that different sectors of the economy of the country are going through.
"All exports, re-exports, load movement, tourism, permissions of construction, industry, etc., important pillars of the economy are decreasing, which would make this growth estimate to be negatively impacted", added Jované.
The Economist stressed that due to this situation what is going to happen is that we will have a budget that cannot be met and, indeed, those which will suffer will be the social projects of the Government.
He affirmed that the Government is based on three fundamental pillars: education, health and safety, and it is evident that with the approach almost "militaristic" that this Government has displayed, it is almost sure that the budget cuts will be given in the educational sector, as well as in that of health.
The expert stressed that those projects that have an "eternal" financing will to continue, however, the development of roads, new campuses and hospitals will not be possible.
Between those emblematic projects of which the Economist makes mention are the Metro of Panama to which some $600 million has been allocated in the 2017 budget, $335 million for housing, and $900 million for transportation.
In the meantime, for the President of the College of Economists, Olmedo Estrada, the economy is presenting a slowdown, and the Government is avoiding compromising this information until they may have results.
Estrada says that the projections are way below the estimated budget and that figures of the first quarter showed a contraction according to what had been estimated by the Government for this year.
With regard to the budget of 2017, Estrada stressed that it is evident that as affected as the economy is right now, it is not going to be met.