President William Ruto says that every Kenyan with an ID card should have a KRA pin number.
Speaking on Friday, October 28, during this year’s National Taxpayers’ Day, Ruto cited the example of Mpesa with over 30 million registered users transacting daily while he said KRA only had 7 million people with KRA pins.
The Head of State highlighted the importance of technological solutions in widening the tax base.
"There are only 7 million people with KRA pin numbers. At the same time, in the same economy, Safaricom’s MPESA has 30 million registered customers, transacting billions daily. The fact that this opportunity remains unclear to KRA demonstrates why radical changes are necessary. Every Kenyan with an ID should have a PIN number.
"Technology and a considerate, fair, and professional mobilisation will do the job quite well. Safaricom, a telco, has registered more people than KRA, a powerful state organisation. It is very clear that the magic lies in technology and strategy, not power and resources," Ruto stated.
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The President added," We must pay attention to KRA because it plays an indispensable role in mobilising the resources required to enhance the well-being of Kenyans and finance necessary measures for growing the national cake. How we do our tax administration can determine whether KRA is the fulcrum in a virtuous or vicious cycle in our public finance management system."
A Kenyan is normally given an identity card once they attain 18 years and above. This means, if one is given a KRA pin, they become an automatic taxpayer.
