The Ministry of Finance revealed that a surplus of MVR 31.3 million from last year's council budget was distributed amongst council secretariats.
The excess funds were transferred to the councils' "expenditure accounts". Additionally, the ministry instructed councils to settle last year's bills with the amount, and calculate the remaining as income generated for council operations.
Moreover, the ministry announced that although the deadline for last year's expenditures had passed, an extension is granted until the end of the month for councils to make payments on last year's expenses.
Furthermore, the Finance Ministry disclosed that discussions to allow councils to utilize funds without seeking permits for each expense were underway.
The Decentralization Act states that, in the event of a surplus, the budget allocated for councils must be distributed as revenue.
However, this is the first time that the surplus amount was transferred to local councils.