Paraguay Presents 2027 Budget With 11.2% Increase and $2.1 Billion Borrowing Plan

Paraguay’s proposed 2027 national budget would increase spending by 11.2% and authorize the government to borrow $2.1 billion. Economy and Finance Minister Óscar Lovera presented the plan to Congress.

The proposal for the central administration and decentralised entities totals 166.322 trillion guaraníes, or about $25.754 billion. That is 16.7 trillion guaraníes, roughly $2.586 billion, above the approved 2026 budget. The budget assumes an exchange rate of 6,458 guaraníes to the dollar, compared with a current rate of about 5,940.

The government projects a fiscal deficit of 3.9% of gross domestic product in 2027. It says the additional resources will support health, programmes for older people and other social initiatives. The executive branch would receive 76% of the overall increase, equivalent to almost $1.9 billion.

The Health Ministry would take 62% of that increase, or more than $1.2 billion. Lovera said 78% of the ministry’s additional allocation would go toward paying accumulated debts. The remaining 22%, about $260 million, would strengthen purchases of medicines and supplies.

Funding for new medicines would rise from about $509 million to $772 million. Lovera said the allocation for medicines and supplies would nearly triple compared with the $250 million planned for that purpose in 2023, calling the change a “significant adjustment.”

The budget does not include a general salary increase for doctors. Lovera said raising the minimum salary for doctors working 12-hour shifts from 5 million to 8 million guaraníes would cost between $130 million and $150 million, which the government considers unviable at present. He proposed discussing doctors’ career structure and professional development instead. Doctors have sought a salary update since 2012, when public-sector salaries rose by an average of 30%.

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This is a significant adjustment.