Friday, March 29, 2024

Government wants the ZRA to be more user-friendly -Mutati

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Finance Minister Felix Mutati interacting with tax payers
MINISTER of Finance Felix Mutati says Government wants the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) to be more user-friendly in order to improve tax collection from the informal sector.

Speaking yesterday at a consultative forum with the Marketeers’ Association at Government Complex, Mr Mutati said his ministry will develop a practical working mechanism with the marketeers and ZRA so that “we move from ZRA being a scaremonger when they come into the markets to a friend”.

Mr Mutati said everyone needs to pay their taxes.

“Let everyone contribute, even a little amount. You know when you pay a little for something, you are going to take ownership. When you don’t pay, you have no ownership,” he said.

He said there are many people in market places who are willing to pay taxes, but they do not know how to go about it.

And ZRA commissioner general Kingsley Chanda said there is great need to broaden the tax base by including the informal sector, which is believed to be six million strong.

“Traditionally, the government has tended to rely on formal businesses to raise revenue, but recent experiences have demonstrated the need for the country to diversify and broaden its tax base. On the other hand, we are confronted with the fact that the majority of our people are poor, especially in rural areas,” he said.

Mr Chanda, however, said that the question remains how to ensure that every Zambian, regardless of their economic standing, contributes to the tax base.

“We need to think critically about how we can network and form partnerships that will make it easy for tax-payers to contribute to the treasury,” he said.

Mr Chanda hoped that the interaction with the marketeers would make it easier for ZRA to collect revenue from the informal sector.

10 COMMENTS

    • It is online you oval head but badly designed. Very much user unfriendly. Too much technical jargon instead of ordinary everyday language for the user interface.

    • Even ZRA is now under a Chanda has this country got only educated people from this region. All tribal appoints everywhere, like is the case at MOH.

    • Ok contributing to Tax, what is the money used for as we don’t see any developments apart from endless presidential trips, motorcades and uncontrolled ministerial expenditures. Show us the benefits of paying tax, then we will contribute. Otherwise No Benefits No Paying Tax.

  1. Do not just put it online because not everyone can access it from there. The online service is best suited only for big firms. The majority of SMEs cannot access the Ascuda e-service. You should partner with some banking firms or even mobile banking such as mtn so that even those in shanti compounds and rural areas as tax payers can make their deposits in an easy straight forward manner.

  2. Taking the very little they have from marketeers to fund the luxurious lives and the gallivanting travels of the most unproductive men and women in our country the leaders who in addition to hefty salaries and allowances get these tax free.

  3. Yes Bwana Minister, Zambians must demand that everyone should pay fair taxes including the informal sector, MPs, ministers and Mutati himself, the president and vice president. Everyone must sacrifice. I have never seen such lack of sacrifice and leadership as we have in Zambia. Mutati should be first in line and saying I have paid my dues. No hypocrisy!!! And there must be convincing value in the benefit of paying tax. Everything must also be done to reduce financial haemorrhage — and this can only be achieved through a comprehensive and aggressive anti-graft strategy. Am sorry to say Bwina Minister but our government is conspicuously absent in the fight against corruption. And one would be excused for thinking that they are complicit to the crime of corruption against the Zambia people…

  4. … through their inactions or acts of omission. It is obvious that Tanzania is light years ahead of Zambia in the fight of against graft. And reason is simple: there is a shark difference in leadership between Zambia and Tanzania.

  5. But the where is the main opposition to provide checks and balances so as to see the funds being obtained from taxation are wisely used??? The main opposition is busy playing hate inspired petty politics. Even opposition Mps were busy enjoying abnormal allowances and gratuity, why didn’t they come out to condemn such wastage of funds??? Zambia needs a competent opposition that can provide proper checks and balances to see that govt runs to the benefit of the people and not an opposition that prays day and night for people’s suffering to increase!

  6. IMF dictating and the poor pay while the conomy is screwed. ECL gets all the blame but PF has been responsible for the economy since 2011.
    Inputs lead to output. Currently our inputs are borrowings so any outputs are tainted by debt repayment.
    Invest in our pipo with income generating projects aimed at the majority, the 78% below the poverty line

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