The parliamentary session of Tuesday 25th May has been adjourned to next Friday, June 11 at 5 pm. Date on which the National Budget 2021-2022 will be presented. It is understood that the presentation of this budget will be done in a particular context due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
For the first time in history, a second budget will be read, as the country goes through two complicated years, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Two years which have been an unprecedented start for the current government. In 2020, the country lost 15 % of its GDP, mainly due to the ‘total lockdown’ of the first wave, as well as a complete stop of tourism. While the country is still in its second phase of deconfinement, all stakeholders are eagerly awaiting the budget from the Minister of Finance.
On the eve of the second budget of the Minister of Finance, Renganaden Padayachy, the focus remains on a revival, especially with vaccination, which could be in accelerated mode with the arrival of 500,000 doses of Sinopharm vaccine.
The Covid crisis has resulted in an additional of 12,000 unemployed in the year 2020, according to Statistics Mauritius. However, Minister Padayachy’s measures have been of great help to businesses. Without these measures, the number of unemployed could have reached 100,000 as enterprises would have closed down causing a social and economic crisis.
The efforts of the Minister of Finance and the government have thus been crucial in keeping the country on its feet. Since the introduction of the Wage Assistance Scheme and the Self-Employed Assistance Scheme, from March 2020 to date, a total amount of Rs 24 billion has been spent. In total, more than 450,000 beneficiaries are involved.
Under these two key measures, the allocation of funds for the two confinements, from March 2020 to date, has been as follows: firstly, under the Wage Assistance Scheme, Rs 15 billion has been paid to 278,322 employees and secondly, Rs 6.5 billion has been paid to 258,079 self-employed under the Self-Employed Assistance Scheme.
For this year, Finance Minister Renganaden Padayachy, announced in his speech dated on March 14 that the government will also contribute to the salaries of private sector employees, while a One-Off Grant of Rs 10,000 has been provided to Self-Employed. While the Finance Minister is facing a difficult second year, especially with a second lockdown slowing down the economic recovery, more than 220,000 Self-Employed have benefited from this financial support. This resulted the cost of Rs 2 billion to the government.
Keeping this in mind, especially after a 15% reduction in 2020, the priority would likely be to revive the economy with a view to achieving inclusive growth.
