With the final deposit made in the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) for 2022, the government will be able to withdraw a total of US$1.007b ($209b) for use in the 2023 budget.
The total amount in the NRF at the end of 2022 was US$1.264b.
The formula in the National Resource Fund Act for withdrawals from the Fund sets out the total that could be applied to the next year’s budget. According to the First Schedule of the Act, 100% of the first US$500m paid into the fund in the immediately preceding year can be tapped; 75% of the second US$500m and 50% of the third US$500m. Taken all together, this would mean that US$1.007b would be available for the 2023 budget. This figure is 65.8% higher than the US$607.6m that was available for the 2022 budget.
