The government submits the draft budget on September 30 with expenditures of SRD 61.082 billion and projected revenues of SRD 54.821 billion, representing a deficit of SRD 6.251 billion or 3.5 percent of GDP, more than half of the 2025 deficit that was at 8 percent, with SRD 17.228 billion for wages, salaries and social security contributions and SRD 43.844 billion for operating expenditures and programs, while taxed and untaxed resources are to total SRD 50.614 billion. The Council of Ministers is urging speedy consideration and some technical adjustments are traditionally expected in The National Assembly.
Against that backdrop, President Jennifer Geerlings-Simons landed at Zanderij with concrete results, an international coalition has pledged US$ 20 million for forest conservation and management, with the agreement that legislation will be tightened so that wildlife management, monitoring and local support fall within a framework. The president linked ecotourism and nature-friendly business to clear rules for areas like Bigi Pan and made it a priority that indigenous and tribal communities benefit directly through jobs, clean water and education, because only then will protection work in practice. In New York, she spoke with Bhutan's Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, among others, as two rare carbon-negative countries gained weight together, and with Barbadians and investors who indicated their desire to support the path laid out. Meanwhile, The Hague confirmed that Prime Minister Dick Schoof will do his utmost to be present at 50 years of Srefidensi around November 25, while Willem-Alexander will travel for an official state visit shortly after the anniversary celebrations, visibly deepening the relationship without overshadowing the anniversary's own interpretation.
Former Minister Marie Levens speaks from Sept. 30 to Oct. 3 at the International Congress in Recife on digital innovation in higher education, focusing on how technology can support or undermine democracy and how access and media literacy prevent exclusion. Her experience with the OAS portal that digitally retrained thousands of teachers in Latin America and the Caribbean shows that digitization only works when education takes ownership and disinformation is actively fought. In the same spirit, Suriname joined the OIC meeting of labor ministers in Baku for the first time, where Deputy Minister Raj Jadnanansing spoke with OIC Director General Azar Bayramov about strengthening the Labor Inspectorate, modernization of labor laws, employment policies and occupational health and safety, including apprenticeship pathways to accelerate skills matching. Suriname wants to join the OIC Labor Center to complement cooperation with the ILO now that UN funding has become tighter, the pledge is that priorities will be incorporated into a decent work agenda.
State Oil Director Annand Jagesar corrected the public figures on dividend flow, stating that the monthly remittance to the State is not USD 2.5 million but USD 6 million, previously it was USD 10 million, with three reasons for the decline, lower earnings due to an oil price estimated between USD 56 and USD 59 per barrel for 2026, expiring block bonuses of which 68 percent were paid to the State and the heavy financing of USD 1.6 billion to participate in the offshore Granmorgu project. The company says it wants to help the government in the bridge phase 2025-2028 when debts are pressing, but at the same time stresses that temporary revenues and long loans require tight cash management. Right there is the silent lesson, budget targets live longer when assumptions about prices, bonuses and project loans are conservative and when additional revenues strengthen the base first rather than filling in gaps.
Systems were also tightened up outside the courtroom, as the Coast Guard conducted hands-on training with Omni Helicopters International and the Navy focusing on search and rescue and man-over-board, the patrol vessels P-101 Rutu and P-102 Dyamantie ran realistic scenarios requiring speed, teamwork and precision. By practicing under almost real conditions, trust grows between teams on water and in the air, although the Coast Guard remained clear, resources are limited and therefore in future exercises, even more of the Coast Guard's own crews will be deeply involved in the practical scenarios so that knowledge and skills are secured. This is in line with a broader responsibility in the tourism chain, the industry association Shata launched on World Tourism Day the Sustainable Pledge Program through which members collect and recycle plastic and other materials in resorts, hotels, restaurants, boats, buses and cabs, with Support Recycling Suriname as an experience partner that has been placing collection bins for ten years and maintains awareness through schools and neighborhood campaigns. Initiatives along the Upper Suriname River simultaneously show where the rub is, logistics and motivation determine whether bins work and whether waste gets from water to road, which is precisely why it helps when companies map their flows and producers and importers take responsibility for collection. Joab Global's Oil-to-Soap program showed how used edible oils from hotel kitchens are purified into hand and body soaps, since 2022 also at Torarica, saving the environment, replacing imports and visibly engaging guests in circular processes.
