The CGE's implementation report, presented this Wednesday by the Government in the National Assembly, was approved with 104 votes in favor from the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) and 63 votes against from the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA).
The National Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA), the Social Renewal Party (PRS) and the Humanist Party of Angola (PHA), all in opposition, abstained, totaling five votes.
In her declaration of vote, MPLA deputy Maria Idalina Valente stated that the party voted in favor of the CGE 2023 because it recorded “progress in the areas of budgetary management, namely prudent execution that resulted in a positive balance of 1.3 percent of GDP and a robust primary balance”.
“These indicators contribute to the credibility of fiscal policy and the stability of public finances, especially in an economic context still marked by natural challenges,” he explained.
UNITA's vote against was justified by deputy Anabela Sapalalo considering that the CGE's priorities “are completely truncated and, therefore, she argued, “it becomes impossible to put the country back on the path of sustained growth and promote its development”.
For the PHA, deputy Fernando Dinis justified the abstention vote due to the fact that the 2023 General State Account presents “gaps in distributive justice, lack of concrete results for youth and women and an increase in public debt without measurable social return”.
The Secretary of State for the Budget, Juciene Cristiano dos Santos, revealed that in 2023 revenues worth 20.33 billion kwanzas were collected, which represents an execution of 101 percent of the General State Budget (OGE). Expenses, in turn, totaled 20.1 trillion kwanzas, corresponding to 100 percent execution and a 22 percent increase compared to 2022.
The executive highlighted that the increase in expenses was mainly due to higher charges for debt interest, subsidies, employer contributions and other transfers. The overall budget balance pointed to a surplus of 235.57 billion kwanzas.
The Secretary of State also highlighted that 2023 marked the beginning of a new cycle of governance and the continuity of structural reforms, with a visible impact on internal revenue collection and the expansion of public debt maturities.
