A round-up of public finance news stories from the Middle East and Africa you might have missed this week (May 20-24).
Zambia is ‘running broke', says opposition leader
Opposition Alliance for Development and Democracy president Charles Milupi has charged that Zambia is ‘running broke’ after President Michael Sata and the Patriotic Front government wiped out the country’s reserves through excess expenditure (Zambia Reports).
Kenyan budget committee wants taxes raised to meet deficit target
The Parliamentary Budget and Appropriations Committee has expressed concerns that the Government might not be able to finance a deficit of Sh163bn in the 2013/14 budget (Standard Digital, Kenya).
Nigerian government releases N200bn for second quarter
The Federal Ministry of Finance has announced the release of N200bn for the second quarter of 2013 to further bolster the execution of capital projects captured in the 2013 budget (This Day Live, Nigeria).
Qatar growth forecast at 5-6% in next few years, says Barclays
Qatar’s new budget for 2013/14, approved at the end of March, confirms the government’s pursuit of an expansionary fiscal stance to support its growth and diversification strategy, says a Barclays report (Gulf Times, Qatar).
Liberian government publishes landmark resource audit
Publication of a full audit of how Liberia awarded its resource concessions between 2009 and 2011 is a global first, campaigning watchdog Global Witness has said (All Africa).
