Intergrated Revenue Administration System and Local Revenue Performance in Mbale City
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Date
2024-09-19
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Uganda Christian University
Abstract
Uganda adopted the integrated revenue administration systems (IRAS) and it has demonstrated positive outcomes in addressing challenges related to local revenue management and administration and led to an improvement in revenue performance. In Nansana Municipality, revenue collections increased by 94 % from UGX 2,762,064 in FY 2018/2019 to UGX 5,366,264 in FY 2021/2022 and taxpayer compliance rose by 27 % from 56 % to 83 % over the same period.
However, in Mbale City, local revenue collections increased by only 10.3 % from UGX 1,477,000 in FY 2018/2019 to UGX 1,629,250 in FY 2021/2022 and taxpayer compliance rose by only 10 % from 37 % to 47 % over the same period.
This study therefore was to determine the effects of the IRAS on local Revenue performance using Mbale City as a case study because despite the implementation of the IRAS, its local revenue performance was comparatively dismal.
A cross-sectional survey research design alongside purposive and simple random sampling using 181 respondents was employed. Both qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection specifically key informant interviews and Questionnaire administration were used.
The study findings using simple regression analysis revealed the following: The automated taxpayer enumeration is positively correlated to local revenue performance accounting for 14.7% at p=0.000. meaning 85.3% is accounted for by other factors; The automated revenue assessment is positively correlated to local revenue performance accounting for 25.6% at p=0.000. meaning 74.4% is contributed by other factors; The automated local revenue collection is positively correlated to local revenue performance accounting for 23.0% at p=0.000 meaning 77% is accounted for by other factors.
The study reveals that in the revenue administration system there are factors other than the automation of the enumeration of tax payers, assessment of revenue and its collection that affect local revenue performance.
The study recommends that besides the automation of the revenue administration system which has already been done, Mbale City should now shift attention to the other factors that affect local revenue performance that automation has not addressed. These factors are reflected in the strong disagreement by the respondents to the constructs in the questionnaires as follows: Continuous joint political and technical mobilization and sensitization; Transparency by public display of the numbers in each category of local revenue; Public tax education and sensitization on the benefits of tax; Facilitation of the internal audit unit to do independent verification; Facilitation to ensure close supervision of field staff by senior officers; Facilitation of political leaders to do regular monitoring of technical supervision; Setting of voluntary compliance timelines and use of non-coercive collection methods; Ensuring transparency in the use of the taxes collected to deliver services; Tagging revenue sources to specific service delivery infrastructural projects
Description
Postgraduate research