KRA hints at modernizing systems to surpass Sh1.6Trillion levy collection

By Monica Muema

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has announced plans to modernize its IT technology in an effort to enhance efficiency in tax collection which hit a record Sh1.6Trillion in the just ended fiscal year.

“With enhanced operational efficiency as embedded in the ongoing KRA transformation, we are optimistic that the landscape of revenue mobilisation and collection in this country will be completely changed,” said Githii Mburu, Commissioner General for the tax agency.

Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) revenue collection for full year running from July 2018- to June 2019 reached a new record with Sh1.580 Trillion the exchequer collected, compared to Sh1.435 Trillion collected in the same period last year.

Revenue grew by 11.3 per cent compared to the previous year’s 5.1 per cent growth. Revenue collected has more than doubled over the last seven years from Sh0.707 Trillion in FY 2011/12.

For the first time in the agency’s history, Domestic Taxes collection exceeded Sh1 trillion, while Customs revenue exceeded Sh500 billion.

The exchequer revenue grew by 11.5 per cent with a collection of Kshs1, 477 Trillion against Kshs1, 340 Trillion collected in FY 2017/18.  The exchequer tax income amounts as reported in the Kenya Gazette was Kshs1.440 million.

In addition, KRA collected other duties including Agency Fee amounting to Kshs103 Billion. This is revenue collected on behalf of other government agencies mainly at the ports of entry. They include Railway Development Levy, Traffic Fees, Land Rent and Cash in Transit amongst other levies.

KRA is executing strategic initiatives as guided by its 7th Corporate Plan theme, “Revenue Mobilization through Transformation, Data-driven Decision-making and Tax Base Expansion”. KRA’s goal in revenue mobilization is to raise the Revenue/GDP ratio from 18.3 per cent as recorded within the 2017/18 financial year to 19.2 per cent by the 2020/21 financial year.

The agency has also launched key initiatives to improve customer service delivery including establishment of Tax Service Offices (TSO). Last year, eleven (11) TSOs were launched making a total of 43 Tax Service Offices countrywide. This enabled KRA resolve 3,120,139 taxpayer’s enquiries.

KRA has also refocused customer interactions through redesigning of service delivery approach and building taxpayer trust. This enabled KRA to recruit an extra 1.11 million taxpayers. As a result, more than 3.8 million taxpayers filed their returns in Financial Year 2018/2019.