Praia, Aug. 18, 2026 (Lusa) - The parliamentary leader of Cabo Verde's largest opposition party rejected on Tuesday the government's accusations of «budgetary slippage», maintaining that the report by the Public Finance Council (CFP) confirms the absence of hidden accounts.
«Recommendations aimed at improving information and transparency demonstrate a commitment to good governance and do not constitute evidence of hidden accounts, manipulation or concealment of debt,» said the parliamentary leader of the Movement for Democracy (MpD), Luís Carlos Silva.
The MP said the prime minister, Francisco Carvalho, had «strayed from the truth» when justifying the presentation of the Amending Budget and had called into question the credibility of the public accounts and Cabo Verde's reputation amongst its international partners.
According to Luís Carlos Silva, the CFP report, published today, shows that the budgetary amendments were approved in accordance with the law and subsequently incorporated into the reprogrammed budget.
According to the CFP document, budgeted expenditure rose from 95.7 billion escudos (€867.9 million) to 102.7 billion escudos (€931.3 million), This increase stemmed mainly from an 80.4% boost in external resources, which rose to 15.7 billion escudos (€142.3 million).
The institution clarified that the inclusion of these loans in the budget reflected the recording of funds secured through loans and grants, rather than the taking on of new debt.
In the first quarter, tax revenue grew by 12% and total expenditure rose by 16.6%.
The overall budget balance remained positive at 1.4 billion escudos (€12.7 million), equivalent to 0.4% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), although this was below the 0.8% of GDP recorded in the same period of 2025.
The CFP recommended that the government ensure greater predictability in preparing the state budget, include external funding already secured, and publish a consolidated table that sets out all budgetary amendments and their reconciliation throughout the year.
The previous MpD government had initially set the State Budget for 2026 at 95.6 billion escudos (€866.9 million); the current government subsequently presented an Amending Budget, which President José Maria Neves promulgated a week ago.
The amending document provides for a 0.1% reduction in projected public expenditure and increased funding in social areas, including 139 million escudos (€1.26 million) for education, 300 million escudos (€2.72 million) for medicines and 50 million escudos (€453,500) for social benefits.
RS/ADB // ADB.
Lusa
