South Sudan plans austerity, easures after halting oil output
South Sudan plans to cut non-salary spending by 50 percent after its decision to halt oil
production, which accounts for 98 percent of the African country’s revenue, Finance Minister Kosti Manibe said.
The austerity measures will be implemented once President Salva Kiir signs off on the plan approved Feb. 17 by the Council of Ministers, he said today in an e-mailed statement.
“These are swift and deep cuts, but no layoffs of civil servants” or security forces are planned, he said. “Everyone’s paycheck is being maintained.”
South Sudan, which took control of about three-quarters of the former unified Sudan’s output of 490,000 barrels a day when it gained independence on July 9, shut down production last
month after the two countries failed to reach an agreement on how much landlocked South Sudan should pay to transport its oil through a pipeline across its northern neighbor.
Salaries are South Sudan’s biggest expenditure, accounting for about 42 percent of the country’s budget of almost $2 billion. The ministry hopes to make up for some of the lost
revenue by “intensifying efforts to increase collection” of business profits, excise and personal income taxes, according to the statement.
- Database Search
- Unpaid Debt A comprehensive overview of the role of the Lundin Consortium in the oil war. ECOS calls upon the Swedish, Austrian and Malaysian governments to investigate whether, as a matter of international law, Lundin, OMV and Petronas 'were complicit in the commission of war crimes and crimes against humanity by others during the period 1997-2003.’ In response, the Swedish Public Prosecutor for International crimes opened a criminal investigation into ‘links between Sweden and the reported crimes’.
- In Depth For more specific information about the Lundin court case please visit the Unpaid Debt dossier.
