Safaricom: Ruto’s Promised Cheap Smartphone Impossible With Increased Taxes
Sample smartphone/photo courtesy
Kenya’s giant Telecommunication company, Safaricom, has ruled out the possibility of the country locally manufacturing cheap smartphones retailing at Ksh. 5,000.
This is an answer to President Ruto’s remarks in December 2022 that Kenya will manufacture the cheapest smartphone in Africa this year whose cost will be less than Ksh.5,000.
According to Safaricom, the increase in taxes will see a rise in the cost of manufacturing smartphones locally to Ksh.11,500.
The company during public hearings on the Finance Bill therefore urged National Assembly’s Finance and Planning committee to reduce the rates of import duty, excise duty and VAT through the Finance Bill 2023 to ensure a reduction in the costs of the planned locally assembled phones.
“If we were to work with the President’s vision of a $50 phone, we need to address the question of import, excise and output VAT for me to save Ksh. 4,000 and bring down the cost from Ksh. 11, 500 to Ksh. 7,500.” said Karanja Gichiri, Safaricom Head of Venture
“We can scale the taxes down to Ksh. 3,000 where it will give the final price of locally assembled smartphone to between Ksh.6,500 to Ksh. 7,000.”
President Ruto promised to deliver the cheap phones to ensure that all Kenyans will be able to access digital government services.
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