RECORDER REPORT

ISLAMABAD: The government wants to present next fiscal year budget to the federal cabinet and Parliament in the month of May 2018 and preparations to this effect are going on in the Finance Division.

Finance Division has issued budget circular to ministries and divisions with request for submission of revised estimates for 2017-18 and budget estimates for 2018-19 along with medium-term budget estimates for 2018-21.

According to tentative schedule, the Finance Division has been asked o prepare budget strategy paper by February 1, 2018 and it will be presented to the federal cabinet for approval. The ministries and divisions have been asked to submit indicative budget ceilings for current expenditure and development expenditure by the second week of February. Priorities committees meeting will start reviewing budget of ministries and divisions from the first week of April.

The tentative date of Annual Planning Coordination Committee (APCC) meeting to be jointly chaired by Planning Commission and Finance Division is in the middle of April 2018 followed by National Economic Council (NEC) meeting in the last week of April 2018. The APCC meeting will finalize total development outlay in consultation with the provinces as well as AJK and GB. The APCC meeting will be chaired by Minister for Planning Development and Reforms and attended by ministers of planning and development of the provinces as well as Gilgit-Baltistan and minister for local development AJK.

The NEC meeting will be presided over by the Prime Minister and attended by the chief ministers and finance ministers of the provinces along with prime minister of AJK and chief minister GB as well as Governor Khyber Pakhtunkwah who represent Federally Administered Tribal areas (FATA). The budget documents are scheduled to the completed by end of April 2018.