A KPMG East Africa tax expert has warned that Kenya’s proposed Finance Bill 2026 focuses more on raising revenue than stimulating economic growth or easing the cost of living.

📻 Breaking It Down

NAIROBI, Kenya, May 21 — The proposed Finance Bill 2026 is heavily tilted toward raising revenue rather than stimulating economic growth or easing the cost of living, tax expert Kiema Onesmus has warned.

Speaking during an interview on Capital in the Morning, the KPMG East Africa Associate Director for Tax and Regulatory Services argued that most proposals in the Bill are designed to increase government collections at a time when Kenyans are already grappling with rising living costs and shrinking disposable incomes.

“The proposals in the Finance Bill seem to be revenue generators as opposed to cost-of-living cushions or economic stimulators,” Onesmus said.

📌 What You Need to Know

The government is seeking to raise an additional Sh120 billion through the Finance Bill 2026 as part of broader efforts to increase tax revenue from Sh2.7 trillion in the current financial year to Sh2.9 trillion in the 2026/27 fiscal year.

However, Onesmus questioned the feasibility of the targets, noting that the Kenya Revenue Authority had already struggled to meet existing collection goals amid a slowing economy and global economic uncertainty.

“You cannot tax yourself to prosperity,” he said, quoting former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

He explained that, unlike countries with vast natural resources such as oil, gold and minerals, Kenya largely depends on taxation as its primary source of revenue.

“What a pity, because it’s either we tax ourselves or we borrow. And the sad reality is that we are finding ourselves at a point where we are milking the cow dry,” he said.

He warned that Kenya risks exhausting its taxable base without introducing policies capable of driving investment, production and broader economic expansion.

📰 Source: Capital FM Kenya