President William Ruto on Wednesday, April 17, revealed plans to increase revenue collection as part of its efforts to tame the public sector wage bill.
Speaking during the Third National Wage Bill Conference 2024 held at Bomas of Kenya, Ruto pointed out that the government will raise an extra Ksh500 billion by digitising the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) services.
He added that if efforts are ramped up, the amount can rise to Ksh1 trillion.
The public wage bill comprises salaries, allowances and other benefits awarded to public sector employees for delivery of services.
"We can raise an extra Ksh500 billion if not an extra Ksh1 trillion just by digitising KRA and getting money that we are currently not getting," he stated.
The president questioned the bloating wage bill attributed to the payment of salaries to public sector employees, citing that measures need to be implemented to unlock more funds for the country's economic development.
"One million of us working are taking away Ksh1.1 trillion of the Ksh2.2 trillion we collect. The irony of this is that when we are asked to contribute 1.5 per cent for other Kenyans to earn a job, we complain," the head of state added.
"We forget that there are millions of Kenyans not earning a salary and are still being taxed. However, these Kenyans are not complaining."
Ruto maintained his stance that his administration must deliver on its promises to provide job opportunities to thousands of youth through the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA).
"We have so many support staff that the push from the public is everybody wants a job, Mr President give us positions for the military, for the police."
"Public service is not a place for employment, we must be deliberate about creating alternative pathways to employment. We have millions of young people out of school. We owe it to them as a nation to create opportunities for them."
He confirmed the government's plans to reduce the current wage bill of 43 per cent of the national revenue to 35 per cent, citing that this would free more resources and opportunities for taxpayers.
