The Rwandan Government, through the Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA), recognized the best taxpayers for the 2022/2023 fiscal year on December 22 during the 21st Taxpayers Appreciation Day ceremony held in Kigali. 

The event was in line with the 2023 Taxpayer Appreciation Month, organized under the theme 'Request for EBM Receipt to Build Rwanda.'

During the celebration, RRA Commissioner General Pascal Bizimana Ruganintwali mentioned that the use of Electronic Billing Machine (EBM) technology yielded positive results. He highlighted a significant increase in value-added tax (VAT) and Corporate Income Tax due to the adoption of EBM.

For the 2023/24 financial year, RRA has been given a target to collect Frw 2637 billion, representing 52.4% of the current national budget. Commissioner General Ruganintwali emphasized the need to enhance services to taxpayers, broaden the tax base, and increase awareness through regular tax education.

“To safeguard our achievements and achieve the development that we all desire as a nation, we aim to improve services for taxpayers to broaden the tax base. We will enhance awareness and provide regular tax education for taxpayers and customers because we understand that the introduction of new laws and technology systems requires awareness,” he said.

“We will continue to deploy IT solutions in our services to facilitate customer access. Additionally, we will enhance our ongoing digital transformation journey and utilize information technology by harnessing the data we receive from the systems,” he added.

The Private Sector Federation Chairperson, Jeanne Francoise Mubiligi, commended RRA's efforts in organizing the taxpayer appreciation day, encouraging compliance with tax obligations. She expressed pride in contributing to national development and pledged to work with businesses to ensure timely and proper tax payment.

Speaking at the event, Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente appreciated taxpayers who performed well in meeting tax obligations and urged all Rwandan residents “to make EBM use a culture” and contribute to the development of the country through effective tax payment.

He said that if every person who must pay tax does it, and EBM compliance is ensured, it would be easy to achieve – and even surpass – the target for fiscal year 2023/2024 to generate tax revenues enough to fund 52 percent of the more than Rwf 5 trillion national budget.

“Let's all use EBM to build the Rwanda we want, and we know that we reap the rewards all together. Whether you are a businessperson, a customer, the government, all the country together, we all benefit when the appropriate tax is paid on time,” he added.

He assured to continue working with business people to address their challenges, including the delaying VAT refund.

See all the best taxpayers awarded during the event.