Government Revenue Falls Short of Expectations

The Ministry of Finance has revealed that government revenues did not meet expectations for the financial year ending in March 2024. This will affect the budget for the current fiscal year. The government is now evaluating options to ensure responsible financial operations and meet legal targets.

In the 2023/24 fiscal year, government revenues reached $97.5 billion, an increase of 11.8 percent from the previous year. However, this fell $22.4 billion short of the budget. Similarly, tax revenues were $78 billion higher than the prior year but $24.8 billion less than expected.

The main reason for the revenue shortfall was the results for March 2024. Revenues for March were 18 percent lower than budgeted, with tax revenues dropping by 20 percent. The decrease was mainly due to lower corporate income tax, with some entities and individuals not making their tax payments as scheduled.

Changes in the International Financial Reporting Standards also reduced taxes from several financial institutions. The Tax Administration Jamaica is investigating the impact of these accounting standard changes.

Even though expenditures were $14.4 billion lower than planned, this was insufficient to offset the revenue shortfall. As a result, there was only a $1.1 billion fiscal surplus, instead of the anticipated $9.1 billion, representing 0.04 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP).

KSAMC pledges to uphold dignity and respect for vendors amidst viral video controversy.

KINGSTON, Jamaica—In response to concerns raised by a resurfaced two-year-old video showing stalls being destroyed by municipal police, the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) is emphasizing its commitment to a fresh approach under new leadership.

In a statement released on Monday, the KSAMC clarified that most of the officers seen in the viral video are no longer employed by the organization. Additionally, since the appointment of a new Mayor to lead the municipality, the Corporation plans to reevaluate its communication with stakeholders, particularly vendors.

“The Corporation would like to reassure the public that the incident occurred over two years ago under a different administration. While we acknowledge the challenges faced by our municipal police officers, the KSAMC is committed to reviewing our approach to ensure that all our stakeholders, including vendors, are treated with dignity and respect while upholding public order,” the statement read.

KSAMC

Andrew Swaby of the People’s National Party (PNP) was elected as the new mayor of Kingston in February following the Electoral Office of Jamaica (EOJ) confirmation that the party had secured the majority in the local government elections.