Prime Minister Mamitiana Rajaonarison has raised his voice against the slow pace of budget execution. He demands the immediate identification of bottlenecks and solutions to reach 100% of the objectives for 2026.
A reprimand. This is what Prime Minister Mamitiana Rajaonarison addressed to the managers of public finances and public investment execution in Anosy on Wednesday. These reprimands were motivated by the observation of a low budget execution rate for the 2026 fiscal year.
Facing the officials of the budget chain, the head of government set an unequivocal trajectory: “identify the obstacles slowing down public spending and find ways to remove them without delay.” The immediate goal is equally clear: “reach a 100% budget execution rate for this year 2026.” These instructions trigger a race against time, given that the Ministry of Economy and Finance has already set the deadline for budget commitments for November 2.
The observation during Wednesday’s meeting is that at the start of the last quarter of the year, the budget execution rate is 44.2%. A poor performance that penalizes public investments, particularly for projects financed by external funds. Regarding the latter, the execution rate is 20.3% according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. For state-funded investment projects, the situation is relatively better, with an execution rate of 63.7%.
Due to a lack of disbursement, a sum of more than “1,000 billion ariary,” according to Mamitiana Rajaonarison, is blocked at the Central Bank. “The Central Bank told us that this is a first,” he added. While the amount is staggering, a low execution of investment budgets reflects poor state performance in this area. An example provided by Dr. Herinjatovo Ramiarison, Minister of Economy and Finance: the delay in executing a road project represents a loss of 2% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), or 360 million dollars.
“We know when the budget execution period begins and ends, so why always wait until the last minute to get started?” lamented the head of government, expressing a certain annoyance. A sentiment that, according to him, stems from the requests for derogation recorded at the Prime Minister’s office by public entities when the Ministry of Economy sent them a circular reminding them of the November 2 deadline.
Furthermore, it is not just about accelerating the commitment and disbursement processes, but above all ensuring they have a positive impact on the daily lives of the population. The Anosy meeting therefore sought to identify blockages and find solutions to remove them. The Prime Minister emphasized that the goal is to act “immediately” to remove bottlenecks. On the public television channel TVM on Sunday, he used the term “expeditiousness.”
An expression frequently highlighted by the Prime Minister is also that “if the blockage is a person, we replace them; if it is a question of procedure, rule, or law, we will modify it.” Words he reaffirmed in Anosy on Wednesday. However, the problem concerning the budget execution rate is not new. International donors, notably the World Bank, have already sounded the alarm regarding the low disbursement rate of external funding due to bureaucratic heaviness.
Regarding external funding, Prime Minister Rajaonarison maintains, however, that the heaviness of procedures is also found on the side of international partners. He concedes that this situation results from a lack of trust in the State. The head of government thus recognizes that it is up to Madagascar to demonstrate good governance in order to reassure its partners and thus lighten the various stages of technical and financial validation.
During the session for the adoption of the amended finance law at the National Assembly in June, deputies also pointed to the low budget execution rate. A glaring situation in sensitive sectors such as energy, water, or education. Before the members of the Lower House, Mamitiana Rajaonarison had already committed to “breaking” the causes of administrative heaviness. A task force is currently reflecting on the subject. While waiting for the necessary measures to be taken, the procedures still in force risk turning the goal of reaching a 100% budget execution rate by November 2 into an impossible mission.
Captured & Published at: 2026-10-09 06:08:34 (Madagascar Local Time EAT)
Original Source: https://www.lexpress.mg/2026/10/execution-budgetaire-le-premier.html
