The combined debt of Flemish municipalities has gone down by 10% over the past five years, according to figures released by Flemish Minister of Home Affairs Bart Somers (Open VLD) at the request of Brecht Warnez (Christen Democratisch en Vlaams, CD&V).
The debts of the inter-municipal associations rose, however.
The debts of all Flemish municipalities combined fell from €8.9 billion in 2017 to €8.1 billion in early 2022. The Covid-19 crisis had little impact on municipal budgets.
“Yet it is not as rosy as it seems,” said Warnez. “The energy crisis and rising inflation will hit municipal budgets all the more like a bomb. The current funding system has to be shaken up or many local investments in, for example, bicycle safety, sports halls, swimming pools and so on will be postponed in the coming years.”
Warnez was referring to resources distributed from the Municipal Fund. “Large cities Antwerp and Ghent today walk away with 40% of the funds, while only 12% of Flemings live there," he said."Small cities and rural municipalities suffer as a result. This inequality can no longer be justified.”
Meanwhile, the debts of the inter-municipal associations are rising. They grew by 54% in 10 years to over 10 billion euros, outstripping the debts of cities and municipalities.
