During 2024, public finance management was characterized by large fluctuations in liquidity and an unusual concentration of spending in December, bringing direct consequences to the country's fiscal balance.
According to the report of the Supreme State Audit (SSA) on the implementation of the 2024 budget, total liquidity has fluctuated from 40 to 137 billion lekë, which indicates insufficient management of monetary assets. Furthermore, unnecessary currency conversions have produced increased costs for the state budget, further worsening the financial situation.
December has become the month where most spending, both current and capital, is concentrated. Current spending has been almost twice as high as the monthly average, while capital investments have increased by up to fivefold.
In the period September-December alone, 245 investment projects worth a total of 14.8 billion lek were detailed for the first time, with part of the funds being used to settle arrears. Furthermore, in December, 323 projects launched during the previous months were closed, while dozens of other projects remained active for only two or three months, a practice that indicates poor planning and inefficient investment management.
Despite the approval of Normative Act No. 5 on December 19, which was supposed to bring about final budget revisions, 150 internally funded projects have resulted in zero implementation. The lack of measures to close these projects that have not advanced has meant that the funds foreseen for them remain invalid, creating a new burden for the following years.
The accumulation of expenditures in December has absorbed the entire fiscal surplus of January-November and has turned the balance into a deficit of about 17 billion lek.
In December alone, revenues reached 62.6 billion lek, while expenditures rose to 152.1 billion lek, which constitutes 21% of all annual expenditures. According to the SAI, this strong deviation, according to data, is related to the lack of accurate planning, the frequent redirection of funds towards new needs without addressing carried forward liabilities, and the exceeding of budget ceilings.
The phenomenon has significantly increased the country's fiscal risk, exposing public finances to uncertainties created by careless liquidity management, the expansion of contractual commitments beyond the approved scope, and the irregular implementation of medium-term budget planning./ Monitor
