Catholic Information Service for Africa (Nairobi)
12 June 2009
Dar es Salaam — Religious groups, including churches and Non Governmental Organizations (NGO) will now be required to pay taxes on all their goods and services, the government has announced.
While presenting the 2009/2010 budget speech in parliament yesterday, Finance and Planning Minister Mustafa Haidi Mkulo said only sacramental and worship materials will be tax exempt.
The move is likely to generate opposition as churches in the country have always been allowed to carry on their duties including importing equipment tax free.
The move comes after churches in Rwanda recently protested the Religious Bill which they said lumped them together with NGOs and other organizations
In neighbouring Kenya, the Catholic Church has lauded yesterday's budget speech by the government calling it an equitable plan that has considered all Kenyans.
In a statement, the Kenya Episcopal Conference Secretary General, Father Vincent Wambugu called on parliament to pass the budget bill and convert the estimates from paper to reality.
"This budget is revolutionary in economically empowering Kenyans however, this cannot be achieved without a strong foundation of honesty, justice and commitment," Fr Wambugu said.
In a plan largely seen as pro poor, Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta failed to raise taxes as had been highly anticipated, opting instead to cut down taxation on major services and increase government spending on local development.
Among the greatest beneficiaries is the Constituency Development fund (CDF) whose allocation was increased from 130 Million US dollars to 150 Million.
The regional entertainment industry is also expected to benefit after televisions, digital cameras and camcorders were zero rated by the four East African countries: Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda all of which read their budget at the same time.
In Uganda, the government pledged to provide more than UShs. 100 bn or USD 93 million towards the Northern Uganda Peace, Recovery and Development Plan (PRDP). The amount will go towards establishing a fruit processing plant in Soroti and for new universities and roads.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2009 Catholic Information Service for Africa. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
