Noting that state expenditures on employees are increasing year by year, the Auditor General's Office advised the government today not to add more employees.
In the advice presented by the Auditor General's Office at a meeting held by the People's Majlis Budget Committee to review the state budget projected for next year, it was stated that instead of increasing state employees, the capabilities of existing employees need to be enhanced. The advice from the Auditor General's Office also stated that state spending on employees has increased massively due to salary hikes and the recruitment of additional employees.
"...the advice we are giving in this regard is that instead of increasing the number of employees, to increase employee efficiency, find more efficient ways to deliver services provided by the state, and instead of hiring more employees, to proceed by increasing efficiency as stated," said Mohamed Shaan, Director General of the Auditor General's Office, while presenting the office's advice.
He stated that another factor driving up state expenditure is the year-on-year surge in pension payouts. Shaan noted that it had been advised during previous budget reviews to change the arrangement where some state employees are granted more than one pension.
While the aging population increases the number of people eligible for pensions, having a system where huge expenses are incurred for double pensions is a major concern, he also stated.
"Our recommendation in this regard as well is to harmonize the pension schemes in accordance with the Pension Act, and to proceed with these matters in a way that the money given as a double pension can be harmonized into the Pension Act," Shaan stated.
The advice from the Auditor General's Office also highlighted that state subsidies are another area where state expenditures increase year by year, noting an increase in both the amount of funds disbursed as subsidies and the number of subsidy schemes.
Shaan stated that it is observed that when the state budget is submitted, some subsidies that are not included in the budget are also introduced at certain points during the year.
A large portion of the expenditure on subsidies is spent on fuel, according to him.
While out of the MVR 59.7 billion budget projected for next year, MVR 52.6 billion is allocated for expenditure, MVR 42.7 billion of that constitutes recurrent expenditure. That is roughly 71.5 percent of the entire budget. The second-largest expenditure estimated in the budget is capital expenditure, amounting to MVR 9.8 billion.
