The Ministry of Finance in Algeria has taken a significant step to accelerate the implementation of public investment projects. A new measure has been introduced to ease the use of payment appropriations allocated to public institutions during the financial year. This move aims to prevent delays in project implementation, particularly when funds are notified in the final months of the year.
According to a memorandum issued by the Directorate General of the Budget at the Ministry of Finance on September 20, 2026, the new measure allows the supervisory authority to approve an amended budget incorporating additional payment appropriations before the institution's deliberative body convenes. This change will enable institutions to begin the procedures required to use the funds without having to wait for the next session of their deliberative body.
The Directorate General of the Budget identified delays in the use of payment appropriations allocated during the financial year, particularly when appropriations are notified during the final quarter. This often leaves institutions with insufficient time to complete the procedures required to incorporate and use the funds, affecting the pace of investment operations and preventing them from achieving their planned objectives within the prescribed deadlines.
The issue is not necessarily linked to a lack of funding or unavailable appropriations but rather to the procedural process that institutions previously had to follow when new payment appropriations were allocated. Each time additional payment appropriations were granted, the institution's deliberative body had to convene to examine and approve a draft amended budget incorporating those appropriations.
The new arrangement allows the supervisory authority to act before the deliberative body convenes, based on the grant-award decision specifying the amount of additional payment appropriations allocated to each investment operation. This will shorten implementation times, particularly when funding is notified during the final part of the financial year.
The memorandum does not eliminate the role of the deliberative body but changes the timing of its review of the amended budget. Authorizing officers are required to inform the deliberative bodies of amended budgets approved by the supervisory authority at the session following the allocation of the additional payment appropriations.
The new measure is intended to prevent financial appropriations earmarked for investment projects from being frozen due to procedural delays and the limited time remaining in the financial year. This move forms part of a broader effort to simplify the implementation of public investment appropriations, aiming to save time, accelerate project implementation, and ensure that allocated funds can be used before the end of the financial year.
Key points
- The new measure allows the supervisory authority to approve an amended budget incorporating additional payment appropriations before the institution's deliberative body convenes.
- The change aims to prevent delays in project implementation and ensure that allocated funds can be used before the end of the financial year.
- The measure is part of a broader effort to simplify the implementation of public investment appropriations.
