Panama's Budget For Fiscal Year 2010 More Than $10.2 Billion Dollars

By LEONARDO FLORES for La Prensa - The general state budget for fiscal year 2010, delivered to the National Assembly last night by the Minister of Economy and Finance Alberto Vallarino, will be for $10,279,900,000 dollars ($10.2 billion), or $500 million more than what was planned for fiscal year 2009. The project is "defined in a conservative environment of economic growth of 3.5%, inflation at 3% and an unemployment rate of 5%," Vallarino explained to the Deputies of the National Assembly. For operations the government of Ricardo Martinelli in his first budget, allocated more than $6.6 billion dollars. Of this amount $1.3 billion is earmarked to cover debt, $516 million in amortization, and $834.5 million for interest payments. More than $3.6 billion dollars was earmarked for "social investment." The document was endorsed by the Cabinet, which yesterday also approved changes in the way tariffs are applied to milk products. Now the powdered milk for industrial use and powdered milk for retail sale will have separate tariffs. (Editor's Comment: I believe this will be the largest single year budget in the history of the Republic of Panama.)