Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Kenyans.co.ke
Published on 2024-04-13 15:30:01
President William Ruto’s administration has made a bold financial move by setting a daily revenue target of Ksh1 billion through its eCitizen platform. This initiative is part of a larger strategy to enhance Kenya’s fiscal resources, especially in light of the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) consistently falling short of revenue collection targets. The pressure on the government to find new income streams to finance its budget has been growing, leading to this innovative approach.
Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura announced the ambitious revenue target, highlighting the government’s commitment to improving service delivery through digital innovation. President Ruto has prioritized reducing dependence on external funding by strengthening domestic revenue, and leveraging the eCitizen platform is a key part of this strategy. Despite the challenges faced by KRA in meeting revenue targets, new strategies like the daily revenue target aim to address this issue.
Recently, the government revised fees for essential services on eCitizen to increase collections. For example, the fee for obtaining a national Identity Card has been raised to Ksh 1,000, and the cost for ID replacements has surged to Ksh 2,000. Similarly, passport fees have seen significant increases, with standard 34-page passports costing Ksh 7,500 and 50-page passports priced at Ksh 9,500. These adjustments in pricing structure are expected to contribute to revenue generation on the eCitizen platform.
The eCitizen platform is continuously expanding its services and is projected to offer up to 20,000 different services by the end of the year. The platform’s daily users are expected to exceed one million, further boosting potential revenue streams. The success of eCitizen is evident in the remarkable 300 percent increase in collections reported by Immigration Permanent Secretary Julius Bitok from June to September 2023.
While eCitizen shows promise in revenue generation, KRA still faces the challenge of meeting the government’s fiscal expectations. Historically, the government has missed revenue targets in previous financial years. Despite improvements, revenue performance remains below the International Monetary Fund’s benchmark of 25 percent of GDP for emerging economies. However, Mwaura remains optimistic about the revenue strategy, emphasizing continuous innovations and improvements to the user experience on eCitizen to meet revenue targets successfully.
Overall, the eCitizen platform’s growth and success in revenue generation demonstrate the government’s commitment to strengthening domestic revenue sources and reducing dependency on external funding. By setting ambitious daily revenue targets and implementing pricing adjustments for essential services, the government aims to enhance fiscal resources and improve service delivery for the benefit of all Kenyan citizens.
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