Sixteen ministries and 17 government departments failed to spend half of their developmental budgets during the outgoing financial year, the Wolesi Jirga Finance and Budget Commission said on Monday.
Under Article 98 of the constitution, the government has to present to the lower during the last quarter of each financial year the budget for the next year. A precise account of the previous year budget will be presented to the assembly during the next six months.
In its report on last year's budget, the Finance and Budget Commission said that Ministries Water and Energy, Education, Urban Development, Interior Affair, Economy, Higher Education, Mines, Commerce and Industries, Counter-Narcotics, Parliamentarian Affair, Defense and Information could not spend even 50 percent of their developmental budgets.
Muhammad Azim Mohseni, deputy head of the commission, said Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission, Afghanistan National Standards Authority, Central Statistics Office, the presidential office, Meshrano Jirga and the National Directorate of Local Governance failed to use their outlays.
Similarly, the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority, Canalization Department, Breshna Shirkat, High Office of Oversight and Anti-Corruption, Department of Geology and Cartography, Afghanistan Atomic Energy Commission, Independent Human Right Commission and the Commission for the Implementation of Constitution also could not utilize half of their funds.
Eng. Kamal, a member of the commission, said the Atomic Energy Commission, AIEC and Geology and Cartography Directorate failed to fund 161 of the 611 projects they planned to implement in 2011.
The Ministries of Public Works failed to execute 11 projects, Water and Energy 17, Public Health 13, Agriculture nine and Higher Education 11.
Likewise, the Ministry of Education could not implement five of its projects, Information and Technology three and Rural Rehabilitation and Development two.
Fifteen of the 19 projects of Breshna Shirkat three of the Water Supply and Canalization Department could not be funded, Kamal said.
The house decided all parliamentary panels would discuss the budgetary details and share their views with the Finance and Budget Commission. A detailed report would be presented after being compiled by the panel, said Speaker Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi.
"Lawmakers have taken a serious note of the failure of ministries and other government departments to utilize their budgetary allocations. Some ministers could be summoned," Kamal warned.
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