PRISTINA (Kosovo), February 4 (SeeNews) – Kosovo’s parliament said it approved the 2019 state budget, targeting a deficit equivalent to 2.0% of the country's planned gross domestic product (GDP).
Some 65 lawmakers in the 120-seat parliament backed the budget, which is built on projections for economic growth of up to 4.7%, the parliament said in a press release on Sunday.
Revenues are set at 1.9 billion euro ($2.2 billion), whereas expenditures are planned at 2.4 billion euro, according to the draft budget posted in the website of the finance ministry.
Education and health are the sectors that will benefit the most from the budget, with support amounting to 300 million euro and 234 million euro, respectively, prie minister Ramush Haradinaj said in a separate statement, following the vote in parliament.
Capital investments will amount to 75 million euro, an 11% increase compared to 2018, Haradinaj said, adding that the funds will be used to finance many existing and new infrastructure projects.
In comparison, Kosovo's economy is expected to expand by 4.6% in 2018 with a budget deficit set at 1.5% of GDP, according to 2018 budget estimates.
($ = 0.8726 euro)