As Uganda weans off donor aid addiction, the focus shifts, yet again, to Allen Kagina, to raise Ushs8.4trillion in tax and non-tax revenue for the 2013/14 financial year as Uganda government bids to finance 80percent of the Ushs13trillion budget using domestic resources, like taxes and domestic borrowing.
In as much as Maria Kiwanuka, the Finance Minster is ecstatic about majority financing of the budget from domestic resources, it came not as a result of government strategic decision, but rather after donors pulled the plug off budget support due to corruption allegations in the Office Of the Prime Minster and Public Service.
This meant the finance ministry had to look for other alternatives with taxes emerging the best option. Admittedly, Kiwanuka says “increasing tax rates is not the same as increasing tax collections. Uganda has had to chose to increase, by a small excise on goods and services, in order to raise tax revenue.
