The Kenya Revenue Authority(KRA) has launched a digital transformation strategy to modernize tax administration through technology, inclusion, and customer-focused reforms.
Speaking at the 2025 KRA Annual Summit in Nairobi, Chairman Ndiritu Muriithi emphasized that embracing modern tools and collaboration is key to building trust and delivering lasting solutions for taxpayers.
“The future of tax administration at the Kenya Revenue Service is about enduring solutions that emerge when we come together,” he said Tuesday morning, adding that the summit was an “integral part of stakeholder engagement” designed to foster collaboration among domestic and continental partners.
This year’s summit, themed “Beyond the Frontiers, Advancing Digitalised, Inclusive and Customer-Centric Revenue Administration,” brings together policymakers, regional tax authorities, and private sector representatives to share best practices, benchmark experiences, and strengthen domestic resource mobilisation.
Muriithi emphasised that digital transformation is no longer an aspiration but an ongoing reality.
“The world has already changed. Digital transformation is not a future mission; it is what is going on today,” he said.
He said that the Kenya Revenue Service must now “embrace a paradigm shift” that leverages emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and advanced data analytics to simplify compliance and reduce the cost of doing business.
Muriithi added that technology was not about intrusion but improvement. “We are not allowed to invade your privacy or look into your data the way some people think,” he clarified.
“What we are saying is, let us use technology to make both the way you do business and the way you comply with your obligations better and simpler.”
From a governance perspective, the KRA Chair called digitalisation both a guiding principle and a call to stewardship, one that ensures the institution remains firmly on the path of transformation.
“We must provide the policy direction and institutional oversight necessary to sustain reforms that deliver lasting value to the Kenyan revolution,” he said.
He added that a predictable and transparent tax environment was essential for building trust between citizens and the state.
“Taxpayers require clarity and certainty on their obligations so that they can run effectively and contribute,” he noted.
Predictability, he said, not only fosters trust but also strengthens the social contract that underpins national development.
In today’s interconnected global economy, Muriithi emphasised that taxation can no longer stop at national borders.
“Through regional integration and the exchange of information, we can bolster trade, deter illicit financial flows, and promote fairness,” he remarked.
The KRA, he said, continues to leverage technology not only to modernise its internal processes but also to enhance accessibility and service excellence.
Digital platforms such as Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), mobile applications, and self-service portals are expanding taxpayer engagement, reducing physical barriers, and ensuring that every Kenyan, from large corporates to small traders, can interact seamlessly with the tax system.
“This summit is about commitment to shift towards the future,” Muriithi said. “Digitalised, inclusive, and customer-centric systems must sit at the centre of everything we do.”
He further described the annual summit as a platform to demonstrate Kenya’s progress in building a transparent and technology-driven tax system, while reaffirming its leadership in domestic resource mobilisation across the continent.
As discussions continue over the two-day event, delegates are expected to explore practical solutions for aligning technology, governance, and taxpayer services in the evolving fiscal landscape.
The KRA, Muriithi concluded, is ready to lead this transformation.
“Let us use technology not as a tool of control, but as a bridge to compliance, simplicity, and shared prosperity,” he said.