Senior Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh recently tabled the Fiscal Enactments (Amendment) Bill 2024 in the National Assembly which proposes amendments to the domestic and external debt ceilings as well as the Natural Resource Fund Act. The new rules being proposed for the NRF Act, will allow for a sliding scale to be applied for withdrawals from the first US$5 billion deposited into the Fund in the immediately preceding fiscal year. Beyond the first US$5 billion, government is proposing to save 90 percent of the deposits in that year.
The foregoing was explained via a statement over the weekend by the Finance Ministry. Once approved by the National Assembly, the statement said, “The revised rule will take effect from this fiscal year and will replace the conservative rule that currently exists in the Act.”
Similarly, it said the update debt ceilings will take immediate effect and will provide Government with the flexibility needed to adapt the financing mix depending on the evolving global and domestic economic situation, particularly given global uncertainties regarding interest rates.
It would be recalled that the NRF Act 2021 was passed in the National Assembly on December 29, 2021, and represents one of the most significant steps taken to bring greater accountability and transparency in the management of Guyana’s oil resources.
The current NRF Act 2021 which was piloted by this PPP/C Government contains several enhanced clauses, including the establishment of a Board of Directors which is responsible for reviewing and approving the policies of the Fund and monitoring its performance, thereby separating the management of the Fund from the Minister responsible for Finance.
