Private sector challenges MPs to make bold reforms in Finance Bill 2025 » Capital News

NAIROBI, Kenya Apr 26 – The Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) is pushing for reforms in the Finance Bill 2025 to foster industrial resilience, tax efficiency, and stronger private sector participation in national planning.

Speaking during an engagement with the National Assembly Committees on Finance & National Planning; Budget and Appropriations; and Trade, Industry, and Cooperatives Committees, the private sector committed to sustaining the structured public-private dialogue leading to the Finance Bill 2025.

The retreat held in Naivasha saw industry stakeholders present proposals aimed at shaping Kenya’s fiscal policy and legislative agenda to promote competitiveness, investment, and inclusive growth.

While highlighting the role of fiscal policy in shaping Kenya’s global competitiveness, KEPSA Chairperson Jaswinder Bedi noted that the dialogue between Parliament and the private sector has entered a new, proactive phase—one where fiscal policy making is no longer reactive, but co-created.

“The March 25th dialogue – the first of this Finance Bill 2025 series of engagements – laid bare the urgency of reform: Kenya’s manufacturing base is eroding, SMEs remain overburdened by tax complexity, and fiscal unpredictability continues to stifle investment,” said. Bedi.

He added that these challenges are not isolated but are systemic and require structural, legislative, and administrative responses.

“By deepening our engagement now, we create the opportunity to institutionalize a fair, efficient, and growth-oriented fiscal framework that works for the state and the productive sectors of our economy,” the Kepsa Chairman said.

The National Assembly Finance and National Planning Committee Chairman Kimani Kuria (Molo MP) recommended strengthening public-private dialogue and ensuring the private sector is involved in the early stages of tax policy design, digitization of revenue collection to improve efficiency and transparency in tax administration.

He also acknowledged a review of the tax expenditure reporting to ensure that incentives granted are targeted, time-bound, and provide measurable value to the economy.

“We recognize that much more must be done to align fiscal policy with national development goals and investor expectations, and one of the recommendations we have is to institutionalize a Medium-Term Revenue Strategy (MTRS), which will provide a stable and transparent tax policy framework over a 3–5-year horizon,” Kuria explained.

KEPSA CEO Carole Kariuki emphasized the need for the government to implement infrastructure that supports business growth, not just for public demand