Fouzi Lekjaa, Minister Delegate to the Minister of Economy and Finance, in charge of the Budget, presented a preliminary assessment of the execution of the Finance Law for the year 2024, highlighting a reduction in the budget deficit and an increase in tax revenue.
A press release from the Governing Council, published this Thursday, specifies that the 2024 Finance Law is part of a difficult context, marked by an international dynamic characterized by moderate growth due to growing geopolitical and climatic risks. Despite this disrupted context, the government continued its commitment to reorienting public finances towards greater sustainability.
According to the press release, and “ in accordance with the provisional situation of execution of the 2024 Finance Law, the budget deficit continued its downward trend to reach 4% of GDP in 2024, compared to 4.3% in 2023. This control of the budget deficit is attributed to the improvement in ordinary resources, which increased by more than 47.4 billion dirhams, an increase of 14.6% compared to 2023 ».
This dynamic in ordinary resources is largely explained by a sustained increase in tax revenue, which increased by 35.9 billion dirhams, an increase of 13.6% compared to the previous year. As a result, the debt ratio remained stable at the 2023 level, reaching 69.5% of GDP at the end of 2024.
Furthermore, Mustapha Baitas, government spokesperson, presented an almost final assessment of the 2024 Finance Law, affirming that “ all indicators and figures confirm their positive nature, in line with the process of recent public finance reforms ».
He stressed that the control of the deficit is due to “ the improvement of ordinary resources by more than 47.4 billion dirhams, an increase of 14.6% compared to 2023, to reach 370.6 billion dirhams in 2024 ».
The official also indicated that tax revenues recorded a notable increase of 35.9 billion dirhams (+13.6% compared to 2023), thanks to the increase in VAT of 12 billion dirhams (6 billion from of imports and 6 billion of domestic consumption), an increase of 9 billion dirhams for income tax, an increase of 8 billion dirhams for corporate tax, an increase of 3.7 billion dirhams for the internal consumption tax, an increase of 1.4 billion dirhams for customs duties and an increase of 1.5 billion dirhams for registration fees.
This positive development in tax revenue made it possible to cover the increase in overall expenditure, which increased by 22.2 billion dirhams (+5.5% compared to 2023), in particular due to state measures for 2024.
Baitas also mentioned the increase in salaries for various categories of public officials, including doctors, teacher-researchers, employees of the national education sector, magistrates, financial inspectors, legal advisors, agents of the General Directorate of National Security, clerks, nurses, engineers, administrators, and the military. This measure, with a total cost of 13.8 billion dirhams, benefited approximately 1.127 million people.
He also discussed support for transport, the allocation of 4 billion dirhams to the National Electricity Office to stabilize prices, as well as measures to mitigate the effects of drought, including support for livestock feed. , seeds and fertilizers, for an amount of around 1 billion dirhams. In addition, price support for basic necessities mobilized 25.4 billion dirhams, while investment spending increased by 5.3 billion dirhams (+4.7% compared to 2023), reaching 116 billion dirhams.
Finally, he highlighted that the deficit fell from 4.3% in 2023 to 4% in 2024, while debt remained stable at 69.5% of GDP. He concluded that if this preliminary assessment is confirmed, it will contribute positively to the national economy.
Related News :