Libya’s parliament based in the east approved an additional budget of 88 billion Libyan dinars ($18.3 billion) for its appointed government for the remainder of this year, as announced by the parliament’s spokesperson.
“The decision was unanimous during a closed session,” stated spokesperson Abdullah Belhaiq.
“In late April, the House of Representatives (HoR) approved a budget totaling 90 billion Libyan dinars for the Benghazi-based Libyan government led by Osama Hamad, who took office in March 2023.
“Hamad is aligned with military commander Khalifa Haftar, who controls eastern Libya and substantial parts of the southern region.”
Since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising against Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has experienced little peace, splitting in 2014 between warring eastern and western factions.
Interim Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah leads the Government of National Unity in Tripoli, established through a U.N.-supported process in 2021.
HoR member Saltana al-Mosmari noted that the initial approved budget had a deficit.
Several HoR members reached out to different sectors and municipalities, finding that the initial budget “was inadequate”.
“The budget will be spent across all Libyan territories and allocated to the Libyan government,” said Mosmari.
HOR member Aisha Tublqi added that the additional funds “would be managed by the central bank”.
However, it remains unclear whether Sadiq Kabir, the governor of the Tripoli-based Central Bank of Libya (CBL), will transfer the funds to Hamad’s government in Benghazi.
Three days ago, the CBL released a statement indicating that Kabir and HoR speaker Aguila Saleh had discussed “steps taken to adopt a 2024 unified budget” during a rare meeting in Cairo.
The Central Bank of Libya (CBL) is the exclusive internationally recognised custodian of Libyan oil revenues, vital to the country’s economic sustenance.
As of Wednesday, it was unavailable for immediate comment.
The conflict over government control, state revenue, and the search for a political resolution to years of violent chaos threatens to push Libya back into administrative fragmentation and conflict.
During her address to the Security Council last month, Stephanie Koury, the U.N. deputy representative, emphasised that the unification of a national budget “is crucial”.