National spending to finance development projects will reach B$1.05 billion for the 2010/2011 financial year during which a total of 1,043 projects under various sectors will be implemented. The total government expenditure is targeted to be $4,985,785,600.00 for the 2010/2011 financial year.

This was stated by the Minister of Finance II, YB Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Setia Dato Seri Setia Awg Hj Abd Rahman bin Hj Ibrahim during Saturday’s Legislative Council Meeting session.

He added that up till March 2010, a total of $828,937,832.10, or 78.9 per cent, of the $1.05 billion development budget had been spent to finance various projects.

The development budget will be spent on various sectors, including the social services sector that encompasses education, national housing and manpower sources. The sector will be allocated with a total of $283.4 million, or 27 per cent of the allocated development budget.

The industrial and trade sector will meanwhile be allocated with a total of $245 million (23 per cent of the development budget). The< allocation in that sector includes the implementation of various projects under the relevant ministries and related departments, as well as projects undertaken by the Brunei Economic Development Board and development of the various economic clusters that have been identified.

Nearly $167.7 million (16 per cent) will be spent on public amenities. The sector will focus its efforts on the provision of adequate water supply and electricity, among others.

A total of $105.7 million (10 per cent) will meanwhile be injected into development projects under the transport and communication sector, such as projects in roads, telecommunications and civil aviation.

Projects under the info-communications sector will be given $42.9 million. Projects are geared towards enhancing or improving the overall ICT capability through infrastructure and manpower, integration of ICT into government services as well as business processes.

According to the Minister of Finance II, the main objective in this case is to build a “K-Economy” or knowledge-based economy.

Projects under the public building sector are allocated with a total of $41.7 million for the purpose of upgrading existing government buildings and building new ones.

Meanwhile, projects under the security sector are allocated with a total of $27.7 million from the total development budget. The sector encompasses sub-sectors in the Royal Brunei Armed Forces and the Royal Brunei Police Force.

The Science and Research Centre is allocated with a total of $15.8 million (2 per cent of the total development budget). The allocation is meant to cover various fields including financing, Halal product development and the downstream oil industry.

With the development projects, YB Pehin Dato Awg Hj Abd Rahman said, the country is expected to experience direct economic growth in the non-oil sectors such as banking, construction, finance, insurance, trade services and property, which will then provide an economic spin-off towards other sectors.

Also in Saturday’s LegCo session, it was revealed to the council members that out of the targeted government expenditure of B$4,985,785,600.00, a total of $295,413,216.00 would be given to the Ministry of Health.

As for the Ministry of Communications, the budget will be subdivided into the following: Ministry of Communications ($16,425,712.00), Marine Department ($5,084,200.00), Ports ($9,432,685), Civil Aviation ($22,396,140.00), Land Transport ($7,073,000.00) and Postal Services ($11,199,900).

The rest of the total government expenditure is allocated to other ministries and the departments under it.

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