In the 2024/25 financial year, Kenya Revenue Authority collected Sh560 billion from salaried workers through PAYE tax. [Courtesy] Over the last few months, there has been considerable debate on the impact of tax reliefs for workers. The discussion has largely centered on two perspectives: A fiscal stability standpoint, which emphasises the importance of government revenue and a growth-oriented perspective, which highlights how tax reliefs can boost consumption and stimulate economic expansion. In Kenya, there has been a steady trend toward scaling up income taxation rather than production taxation, even though the latter is a more sustainable source of revenue. The…
Author: By Raimond Molenje
The purchasing power of employed Kenyans is estimated to have declined by about 12 per cent, eroded by rising living costs and heavier statutory deductions. [Courtesy] Kenya’s economic trajectory over the next decade will be shaped not only by how much the government spends, but by how effectively it empowers citizens to generate and circulate wealth. At the centre of this conversation lies a central but straightforward idea: a lighter tax burden on the payslip can ultimately lead to stronger economic growth and higher tax revenues for national development. Today, many Kenyan workers are feeling squeezed. Over the past five…