October 28 (SeeNews) - Bulgaria's government has approved the 2021 draft budget envisaging a deficit equivalent to 3.9% of the forecast gross domestic product (GDP), it said on Wednesday.
The government is also proposing to parliament to adopt a second revision of the 2020 budget which will see the planned deficit increased to 4.4% of GDP, the government said in a statement following its weekly meeting.
Bulgaria initially planned a balanced budget for 2020, which was revised in April to target a deficit equivalent to 2.9% of GDP. By the end of September, Bulgaria ran a budget surplus equivalent to 0.8% of GDP.
The priorities of the 2021 draft budget proposed by the finance ministry are income policy, education, healthcare, defence, social and pension policy. The draft budget also envisages measures worth some 3 billion levs ($1.8 billion/1.5 billion euro) to offset the adverse effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the economy.
In 2021, budget revenue is seen at 47.6 billion levs, while expenses are planned at 52.5 billion levs.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)