Mwalimu-G
Elder Lister
ECONOMY
Import duty cut to Sh2.5m per container after outcry
FRIDAY MARCH 29 2024
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua with PS for Cooperatives and MSMEs Susan Mang’eni during a meeting with representatives of small-scale traders from Nairobi County. PHOTO | DPCS
The government has reversed a decision to increase import duty from Sh2.5 million to Sh3 million for a container of goods, yielding to pressure from traders who had complained about adverse effects on their businesses.
The decision followed a meeting between traders from 10 markets in Nairobi and the Ministry of Trade and Investments. The meeting also resolved that an unidentified quantity of goods belonging to local traders which had been held at the Port of Mombasa over standard concerns be released within two weeks.
The traders complained that they were being harassed by officers from the Kenya Bureau of Statistics (KEBS), Anti-Counterfeit Authority (ACA), and the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), over taxation, counterfeits, and import and export rebates.
Read: Food import bill overtakes machinery on duty waivers
“As a result of the engagement, a series of actionable recommendations was proposed: Implementing a fixed benchmarking fee of Sh2.5 million, from the current Sh3 million, for all containers at the port to standardize costs and increase transparency,” the ministry said in a statement following the meeting.
The traders had complained that the extra Sh500,000 import duty imposed per container was not justified and that they were not consulted before the decision was made.
Import duty cut to Sh2.5m per container after outcry
FRIDAY MARCH 29 2024
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua with PS for Cooperatives and MSMEs Susan Mang’eni during a meeting with representatives of small-scale traders from Nairobi County. PHOTO | DPCS
The government has reversed a decision to increase import duty from Sh2.5 million to Sh3 million for a container of goods, yielding to pressure from traders who had complained about adverse effects on their businesses.
The decision followed a meeting between traders from 10 markets in Nairobi and the Ministry of Trade and Investments. The meeting also resolved that an unidentified quantity of goods belonging to local traders which had been held at the Port of Mombasa over standard concerns be released within two weeks.
The traders complained that they were being harassed by officers from the Kenya Bureau of Statistics (KEBS), Anti-Counterfeit Authority (ACA), and the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), over taxation, counterfeits, and import and export rebates.
Read: Food import bill overtakes machinery on duty waivers
“As a result of the engagement, a series of actionable recommendations was proposed: Implementing a fixed benchmarking fee of Sh2.5 million, from the current Sh3 million, for all containers at the port to standardize costs and increase transparency,” the ministry said in a statement following the meeting.
The traders had complained that the extra Sh500,000 import duty imposed per container was not justified and that they were not consulted before the decision was made.
