Madar (Tripoli) - Central Bank of Libya (CBL) Governor Naji Issa has warned that without a political settlement leading to a unified government, the bank "will remain under heavy pressure", in an interview with Global Finance magazine's October issue reported on Saturday, October 17, 2026, by the Libyan news site Al Wasat.
About 85% of public spending in Libya goes on consumption, with salaries accounting for around 45% and subsidies for about 25%, Issa said in the interview. He put public sector employment at nearly 2.3 million people, out of a population of about 7.5 million.
Oil and gas make up more than 90% of government revenue and exports, leaving the economy exposed to price swings and production disruptions, the governor said. Higher oil prices are "not a sustainable solution" unless extra revenue is channelled into productive investment rather than current spending, he added, calling for stronger fiscal discipline and economic diversification through support for the private sector.
Issa described the adoption of the first unified budget since 2013 as an important step towards restoring fiscal discipline, stressing the need to respect agreed spending ceilings and improve liquidity management. He said the bank's unification had moved beyond administrative merger to unifying governance, data and operating procedures.
His remarks come as the dollar traded at 10.18 dinars on the parallel market on Saturday, according to Al Wasat, and days after a public row between the CBL and the National Oil Corporation over oil revenue figures, into which the Audit Bureau stepped by announcing a joint committee to reconcile the data.
