Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi has assured Kenyans that the government is working on a long-term strategy to lower tax rates for individuals, but only when one key condition is met.
Speaking during an interview on NTV on Thursday, December 11, Mbadi noted that the government would only lower the taxes for Kenyans once it achieves its goal of expanding the tax bracket.
"We are actually having a strategy to expand the tax bracket. The moment we bring more people into the tax-paying bracket, we will definitely go a step further and lower the tax rate for individual Kenyans," Mbadi stated.
He disclosed that the government had begun making tax adjustments to ease pressure on Kenyans, with such initiatives including the introduction of the Tax Adjustment Law, which was passed in December 2024.
Mbadi, however, insisted that these changes were part of the government's broader strategy aimed at building a sustainable tax regime in the country.
In the interview, the CS acknowledged the financial burden many Kenyans, particularly the middle-income earners, were grappling with since the introduction of new tax measures in 2023.
“I know that many Kenyans are struggling, especially the middle-income citizens, and the concern has been around whether the taxes that were effected in 2023 have hit their pockets," the CS noted.
He added that the government had already introduced several tax revisions, among them the Tax Adjustment Law implemented in December 2024, to ease the impact of the 2023 tax measures.
"Yes, we did, but we have made a few adjustments to the tax rate, including the Tax Adjustment Law, which we implemented in December 2024", he stated.
Mbadi's clarification comes amid widespread concerns over the high taxes imposed by the government, particularly on Kenyans in the employment sector.
Some Kenyans argue that frequent tax hikes, especially on essential goods and services such as food items and fuel, have driven the cost of living too high.
However, CS Mbadi recently revealed that a larger chunk of the taxes collected from Kenyans is used to service debts, which has since hit the Ksh12 trillion mark.
Speaking at a past interview, Mbadi noted that nearly half of the tax generated goes to paying taxes, leaving the government with inadequate capital to fund key projects.
