UK Begins Montserrat Budget Review

By: - January 12th, 2012

By the Caribbean Journal staff

The United Kingdom’s Department for International Development has begun reviewing Montserrat’s annual budget projections for 2012/2013.

The DFID is looking at whether Montserrat has met its obligations in cutting spending and looking for ways to increase revenue.

In the same report, the IMF projected Montserrat’s economy to grow by 5 percent in 2012.

A team led by Karen McGeough, Montserrat programme manager for the DFID, will hold talks with department heads and a budget team led by Financial Secretary John Skerritt until Jan. 19.

Last month, the International Monetary Fund recommended that Montserrat reduce its dependence on grants from the UK.

According to the DFID, its total level of support for Montserrat in 2011/2012 is forecast at approximately $36.8 million, including $20.2 million in budgetary aid and $6.4 million to meet asocial security deficit.

The mission will look to develop a “strategic growth reform plan,” aimed at creating a roadmap for the improvement of Montserrat’s public sector.

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