Parliament approves MVR 46 million budget for Auditor General

The parliament has approved a budget of MVR 46 million for the Auditor General’s Office for 2015.

The bill was passed unanimously by members present at today’s sitting, with 64 votes.

The budget amount initially proposed by the Auditor General’s Office for 2015, and submitted to the parliament, was MVR 93 million.

The MVR 46 million for the Auditor General’s Office for 2015 was approved by the Parliament Public Accounts Committee yesterday. The committee also said that the Auditor General’s Office should request the Ministry of Finance for additional funds in the event that its projects are affected by budget restrictions.

The committee also said yesterday that the Auditor General’s Office is urged to prioritise the construction of the building in the grounds of Finance Ministry, to solve the problem of lack of space faced by the office and other independent institutions.

Some MPs present at yesterday’s committee meeting proposed that the amount issued to the Auditor General’s Office in the event that MVR 46 million is insufficient, should not exceed MVR 58 million. It was also proposed, by MPs of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), to provide additional funds for the construction of the building.

The two aforementioned issues were not addressed when the MVR 46 million was passed by the parliament today.

Finance Ministry advised earlier that although MVR 93 million had been proposed, a budget of MVR 46 million was appropriate for the Auditor General’s Office for 2015.