NAIROBI — Kenya’s newly elected President William Ruto vowed on Thursday to overhaul the country’s income tax system and introduce reforms that would require high earners to pay more to reduce inequality.
The 55-year-old leader, who posed as pro-poor in the August 9 poll, said in his first speech to parliament since becoming president that he intended to introduce a progressive income tax system.
“We overload trade and underestimate wealth,” the businessman, who went from dishwasher to millionaire, told parliamentarians.
“I am determined and determined to ensure that our tax system meets the needs of the economy,” he said.
“Economic principles of fair taxation require that the tax burden reflect the ability to pay.”
Ruto also pledged to limit borrowing to boost Kenya’s economy, which creaks under the weight of a $70 billion mountain of debt.
East Africa’s fastest-growing economy faces major challenges as around a third of the country’s roughly 50 million people live in poverty.
The prices of basic necessities have soared in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, and unemployment remains a major problem, especially among young people.
Inflation hit a 65-month high of 8.5% in August, while the Kenyan shilling hit a record high of around 121 shillings to the US dollar.
Ruto, who was deputy to former president Uhuru Kenyatta, had a bitter row with his boss during his tenure and criticized his policy of mounting debt.
Ruto cut food and fuel subsidies introduced by Kenyatta last month.
British charity Oxfam said in a report earlier this year that the two richest Kenyans hold more wealth than the bottom 30% of the population.
