The Kenya, Rwanda , Tanzania and Uganda governments are making final adjustments to their budget plans which will be unveiled Thursday.
In Kenya, a parliamentary committee has already approved Sh2.73 trillion of expenditure for the national and county governments in the 2020-21 fiscal year beginning July 1.
The parliamentary committee approved Sh1.8 trillion for recurrent expenditure, Sh584.9 trillion for development and Sh316.5 trillion for the units that were deployed.
The country aims to collect ordinary revenue of Sh1.61 trillion to fund the budget with domestic and foreign borrowing projected to bridge the deficit.
East African states are expected to focus on tax cutting to boost their economies.
The Covid-19 pandemic has pushed the region’s economies into freefall and the private sector hopes that governments will come up with steps to revive growth.
Businesses want a range of tax cuts, particularly import duties on raw materials and petroleum products.
Uganda plans to suspend tax payments on corporations from April to June, while taxes on manufacturing, horticulture, and tourism will be deferred until September.
Kenya has reduced the pay-as-you-earn tax on salaries and the Eastern African Business Council is pushing for the implementation of this tax in all countries in the region.
