Embu County targets Sh900 million from local revenue sources

Embu County Assembly Budget and Appropriation Committee chairman Robert Ireri (right seated) with some of his colleagues after they were sworn into office on September 5, 2017 (Joseph Muchiri, Standard)

The county government has set a revenue target of Sh900 million to supplement the allocation from the national government in a bid to spur economic growth.

The devolved unit currently collects about Sh500 million annually and will thus have to raise an additional Sh400 million locally to meet the ambitious target.

The budget and appropriations committee chairman, Robert Ireri, noted that the target was ambitious and would only be realised if loopholes for revenue leakages were sealed.

SPECIAL SITTING

Speaking during a special sitting where he tabled the Embu County Supplementary Appropriation Bill of 2018, Mr Ireri said the budget committee had allocated Sh90 million for the development of a foolproof electronic platform for revenue.

Seconding the bill, Mwea MCA Harrison Mwaluko said an additional Sh80 million had been set aside for the establishment of the Embu County revenue authority, which will be charged with the mandate of tax collection across the county.

REVENUE COLLECTION

"Enhancing the county’s revenue collection capability is the only way of ensuring that development projects get proper funding in subsequent years. The county executive must implement the proposed revenue-raising measures to realise the development promised to the electorate," said Mr Mwaluko.

Muminji MCA Newton Kariuki attributed the current low revenue collection rates to poor motivation of revenue collectors on the part of the county government.