Harare — THE eagerly-anticipated 2010 National Budget will be presented in Parliament on December 2 when the House resumes sitting next week, Finance Minister Tendai Biti has said.

Minister Biti confirmed the dates of the Budget presentation in the House of Assembly last Thursday during debate on the Public Finance Management Bill.

"It (budget) will be on December 2," he said.

Minister Biti said the 2010 Budget would be growth-oriented in the wake of the stability so far achieved by the inclusive Government.

The International Monetary Fund projected this year that Zimbabwe's economy would grow by an average 3 percent next year in the wake of interventions put by the then acting finance minister, Patrick Chinamasa and the inclusive Government.

Minister Biti said the Budget would also address the use of the South African rand as the currency of reference in the multi-currency system adopted by the Government early this year.

Workers will be eagerly waiting to hear the new tax-free threshold on their 13th cheques.

In an interview yesterday, the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions president Mr Lovemore Matombo said Minister Biti should allocate more resources to social ministries and address the plight of the informal sector.

"More funds should be allocated to the social services sector that has been neglected over the years.

"There should be more funds for road maintenance, upgrade hospitals and for the purchase of drugs," he said.

Mr Matombo said there was need to provide for the informal sector, now a source of livelihood for many families after many factories closed shop as a result of the effects of the illegal economic sanctions imposed on the country by the West.

"The informal economy employs 40 percent of those unemployed and should be supported so that in a couple of years, they can graduate into the formal economy," Mr Matombo said.

He urged the Government to seriously look into the plight of schoolchildren, most of whom failed to register for public examinations this year.

The president of a faction of the Zimba-bwe Federation of Trade Unions, Mr Jacob Gwavava, yesterday said focus should be put on the resuscitation of industries and agriculture.

"The Budget should address the concerns of industry. At the moment, industry is not operating at its maximum capacity and we are losing a lot of money through importing goods. There is need to create jobs and reduce poverty," he said.

On agriculture, Mr Gwavava said the inclusive Government had not given agriculture the attention it deserved.

"Agriculture is the backbone of the economy and should therefore be allocated resources that recognise its importance. Agriculture supports many other industries and should be supported," he said.

Mr Gwavava called for resources to resuscitate the health and education sectors that had been badly affected by under- funding over the years.

The National Association of Non-Governmental Organisations urged Government to fund social sector ministries, especially those dealing with vulnerable children.

"More funds should be allocated for social sector ministries -- education, health and social welfare -- taking into cognisance the needs of the disabled children, orphaned and vulnerable children.

"Proper monitoring mechanisms should be put in place to ensure that the allocated funds cascade to the grassroots," Nango said in a statement.

Nango said Minister Biti should also make funds available for the rehabilitation of children living on the streets.

The group also urged Government to channel more resources for schools' infrastructural development and the running of public examinations.

Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs Patrick Chinamasa, then Acting Minister of Finance, was the first to present a US dollar-denominated budget in January this year, about a month before the formation of the inclusive Government.

The budget was, however, reduced to US$1 billion by Minister Biti in March when the inclusive Government adopted the cash budgeting mechanism. It was slightly adjusted to US$1,1 billion in June when Minister Biti presented his Mid-Term Fiscal Policy Review.

Under the cash budgeting mechanism, Government would spend only what it collected.