Budget 2016/17- losers

By Ronald Owili.

 

The newly read budget offers respite to some quarters of the Kenyan society.  

In this year’s budget, the manufacturing sector and households are set to benefit heavily from the measures the National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich has presented in the 2016/2017 budget.

For the households, the excise duty of energy efficient stoves has been reduced from 25% to 10%. This is meant to spur uptake of the stoves among low income households who mostly use firewood which pose health risks and environmental degradation.

Further, those who use cooking gas are set to enjoy lower costs after liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) was exempted from Value Added Tax.

A heavy load has also been lifted off the shoulders of livestock farmers who have been purchasing animal feed at high cost as a result of tax levied on raw material needed for their manufacture.

Tea and sugarcane levies which had previously denied farmers good return on the produce is also to be scrapped.

In the manufacturing sector those who make aluminum cans and plates are all smile after Rotich announced plans to protect local industries from cheap imports aluminum Import duty on the material has been zero rated from 20% it attracts currently.

To protect local manufacturers, the government has increased duty on iron and steel to 200 dollars per ton.

Manufacturers in pharmaceuticals have also been exempted from paying duty on heating vents.

Others who have reaped from the budget are Entry fee in parks which has been exempted from VAT, same as commissions earned by tour operators as well as air passenger service charge from which reduces from 40-50 dollars.