TIRANA, March 2 /ATA/ After a high stimulus, during 2020 and 2021 in order to mitigate the negative shocks from the earthquake and especially the pandemic, the fiscal policy for the medium term 2023-2025 will be oriented again towards fiscal consolidation, ensuring a relatively high level of public investment at an average about 5.3% of GDP per year (by the central government alone).
According to the macroeconomic and fiscal framework for the period 2023-2025 drafted by the Ministry of Finance and Economy, fiscal consolidation and reduction of public debt is essential to reduce macroeconomic risks, which hinder economic growth and cause macroeconomic instability.
Same sources say that this fiscal framework aims at an overall fiscal deficit of 2.9% of GDP for 2023, from 5.4% projected for 2022, the level of 2.8% of GDP in 2024 and 2025.
As a result of two subsequent shocks, first the earthquake and then the COVID-19 pandemic, the primary balance is expected to be in balance (rate 0) in 2023, with a strong improvement from the negative level of 2.7% of GDP targeted for 2022, while the return to positive values from 2024 to 0.3% and 0.4% in 2025 is continuously targeted.
/j.p/sm/
