Suriname’s government is currently grappling with a pressing governance and fiscal challenge centered on the state-owned national carrier, Surinaamse Luchtvaart Maatschappij (SLM). According to an official announcement from Finance and Planning Minister Adelien Wijnerman during a ministry press conference on Friday, the state has been transferring approximately $2 million in public funds to SLM every single month to keep the struggling airline’s operations running — yet the finance ministry has not received the company’s up-to-date annual financial reports.
Wijnerman confirmed the ongoing monthly transfers in response to questions from attending journalists, stating plainly, “We transfer around $2 million to SLM every month.” When asked whether the ministry had obtained the required recent annual reports, she gave a clear negative answer: “No, we have not received the annual reports.”
The lack of transparent financial disclosure leaves the government in a bind. While the finance ministry has no access to current financial data to evaluate SLM’s performance and fiscal needs, Wijnerman noted that the state has had no choice but to continue the emergency support to prevent the airline from halting operations entirely. “Up to now, unfortunately, we have had to do this,” the minister added.
Discussions between government officials and SLM leadership over the carrier’s financial standing have been ongoing for quite some time. Following a cabinet meeting this past Wednesday, officials have scheduled an emergency emergency consultation in the near term to map out a clear path forward for the future of state financial support for the airline.
Beyond the missing reports, the finance ministry is moving to formalize the nature of state aid to SLM. Officials want to avoid the monthly transfers being classified as non-recoverable subsidies, and have already reached an initial agreement with SLM to reclassify all current and past support as formal loans that the airline will be required to repay to the state. “We do not call this a subsidy, because you do not get subsidies back,” Wijnerman explained, noting that the ministry expects to recover the allocated public funds from SLM over time. It is also working to document all past aid disbursements to the carrier to formalize those as loans as well.
At present, the ministry is still compiling a full accounting of total state support SLM has received over previous years, and Wijnerman said officials are not yet able to release a final aggregate figure. The current direct financing structure through the finance ministry replaced an earlier arrangement from the previous administration that routed aid through state-owned mining company Grassalco, which is no longer in effect.
The minister also emphasized that SLM is not an isolated case: multiple state-owned enterprises across Suriname have accumulated significant backlogs in submitting required financial documentation, and SLM is among the companies with the largest delays. While the ministries of Finance and Economic Affairs have repeatedly pressured SOEs to meet their mandatory annual reporting obligations, Wijnerman acknowledged that the finance ministry has so far not implemented strong enforcement measures to compel companies to submit the required documents.
This issue carries particular urgency for SLM due to the ongoing monthly multi-million-dollar public outlay. Wijnerman stressed that the current transfers are emergency support to address SLM’s immediate crisis, not regular budgeted subsidies, which makes a formal long-term arrangement all the more critical. The ministry has already drafted preliminary documents to formalize the loan structure, which will be discussed with SLM leadership in upcoming talks.
If current monthly support levels are maintained for a full calendar year, total public funding to SLM will reach roughly $24 million. The upcoming emergency consultation will allow the government to decide how long this financing can continue, under what terms it will be provided, and what repayment framework SLM will follow to return public funds to the state.