Morocco’s budget deficit stood at MAD 50.5 billion ($5.52 billion) at the end of October, marking an increase of MAD 7.7 billion ($841.85 million) in only one month. At the end of September, the country’s budget deficit was MAD 42.8 billion ($4.68 billion).
Compared to the same period last year, Morocco’s budget deficit grew by 38.4%. At the end of October 2019, it stood at MAD 36.5 billion ($3.99 billion).
Budget deficit refers to the difference between the country’s overall public spending and revenue, when the former exceeds the latter.
Morocco’s Ministry of Economy published the recent figures on Wednesday.
The continuous growth of the budget deficit is mainly due to the significant increase in public spending in parallel with a decreased revenue from taxes.
Increased expenses, decreased revenue
Morocco’s overall expenses at the end of October reached MAD 230.73 billion ($25.23 billion). The figure includes “ordinary” expenses, investments, and the budget of Morocco’s special COVID-19 fund.
Ordinary expenses, which include the payroll of civil servants, the purchases of public institutions, and the reimbursement of public debts, stood at MAD 193.61 billion ($21.17 billion), 4.7% higher than last year.
Investments reached MAD 49.78 billion ($5.44 billion) and the budget allocated for the special COVID-19 fund exceeded MAD 12.66 billion ($1.38 billion).
On the other hand, Morocco’s revenue recorded an annual decline of 8.8% and stood at MAD 180.26 billion ($19.71 billion), creating a budget deficit. Between October 2019 and 2020, tax revenue decreased by 7.7%, while non-fiscal revenue dropped by 17%.
Morocco’s tax revenue reached MAD 159.94 billion ($17.49 billion) at the end of October. Meanwhile, the country’s non-fiscal revenue, which includes the income that public and privatized establishments generated, stood at MAD 17.86 billion ($1.95 billion).
