Linked to the Build Bhutan initiative, the government has launched the Specialized Firms initiatives to boost youth employment in various construction schemes. The government announced a National Resilience Fund for mitigating COVID-19 linked to job losses and salary cuts. The support included grant for individuals directly affected by the pandemic (now extended until June 2022) and full interest waiver on loans contracted since April 10, 2020 until June 2020. These measures were extended until September 2020, and partial (50 percent) interest waiver will continue until June 2022. In addition, fiscal stimulus in the FY 2020-21 budget includes the implementation of an Economic Contingency Plan (ECP) aimed at helping different sectors, including tourism resilience, agriculture, Build Bhutan (BB) and improvement of farm roads over and above annual budget (Nu 4 billion) and allocating higher level of capital outlay to frontload and accelerate activities from the 12th Five Year Plan. Current expenditure has been rationalized in response to expected fall in revenues and to ensure that it is covered by the domestic revenue. A budget of Nu.1.3 billion has been re-appropriated for health, essential food and fuel, quarantine and related initiatives. Support will be provided to FCB to stock essential food and non-food items. It is deepening fiscal decentralization with upscaling of national grants. Other measures: an additional resource of Nu. 2 billion will be provided to the Ministry of Health to meet health-related spending; Business Income tax (BIT) and Corporate Income tax (CIT) filing for the income year 2019 was deferred until June 30, 2020 and tax payments, for tourism and related sectors (hotel, airlines and tour operators) are deferred until December 31, 2020, while for other sectors until September 30, 2020; deferred payment of sales tax and customs duty on essential items (March to June 2020); waiver of payment of rent and other charges (April-December 2020) by tourism-related business entities leasing government properties, deferral of electricity charges payment for industry (till December 2020), free electricity and wi-fi services to hotels serving as quarantine facility (July-September 2020). As of May 25, the government will be refunding the 5 percent sales tax collected on telecom services collected on or after January 16, 2020. The government is mobilizing additional resources such as grants and concessional borrowing as well as bilateral and in-kind financing to support capital spending. Investments in GovTech is allowing Bhutan to reap benefits during COVID-19 including fast disbursement of cash relief funds. In late September 2020, the first sovereign offering of a 3-year domestic bond of US$ 41 million (or Nu. 3 billion) at 6.5 per cent was issued to support increasing fiscal needs. In late April 2021, the government extended the income and interest rate support till March 2022.
3-Year European Market Forecast: App Spending to Surpass $23 Billion in 2022 as Non-Gaming Surges
2ff7e9595c
Comments