MINISTER for Policing and Communications Ioane Naivalurua says the budget allocation of $34.6million will still allow the ministry to deliver essential services to the public despite expectations of tighter financial conditions.
According to the 2026-2027 National Budget announced by the Minister of Finance Esrom Immanuel yesterday, the allocation includes $1.6m to support narcotics operations and the continued establishment of the Counter Narcotics Bureau.
A further $4m has been allocated for the continued rollout of the BusinessNOW Building Permits and Approval Subsystem, aimed at digitising construction permit approvals to make the process faster, more transparent, and easier for businesses and investors.
In addition, $6.8m has been allocated to Walesi to support nationwide digital connectivity.
Speaking after the announcement yesterday, Mr Naivalurua said he firmly believed the budget would support continued service delivery in policing and communications.
“It’s a budget that will be able to still provide the necessary service to the people, from the perspective of policing and communication,” he said.
He said the budget theme of “responsible budget for a sustainable future” reflected the Government’s approach for the coming financial year.
Mr Naivalurua said the budget also called for greater responsibility across Government and among the public as the country prepared for tighter economic conditions.
He said ministries and departments would need to adjust and manage resources carefully.
“It will be tight, and we just need to tighten our belts, roll up our sleeves, and work a bit harder.”
Mr Naivalurua said his ministry would focus on careful and disciplined use of available funds with strong monitoring of expenditure.
“We will have to make sure that we exercise a lot of prudence and wisdom in the utilisation of our funds.”
He said he would meet his staff to ensure they fully understood the budget allocation and priorities for the year ahead.
“This is what we have, and this is what we’ll have to live with, and this is what we must use to provide service again to the people.”
