Harare – The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) said it exceeded its 2017 gross annual revenue targets by 17% on the back of robust strategies that were implemented to enhance revenue collections.
Some of the measures implemented by Zimra include enhanced operational efficiency, fighting against corruption and intensified taxpayer education and registration programmes, among a battery of measures.
According to Zimra, 19 414 small and medium enterprises had registered with the revenue collector by the end of October 2017, a move which also improved revenue collections.
The record-breaking revenue collection, which is the highest in four years, can also be attributed to enhanced audits.
In addition, Zimra was also involved in continuously following up on tax debts and negotiating with taxpayers for payment plans, as well as closely monitoring adherence to the agreed payment terms.
Zimbabwe’s gross revenue for the year 2017 was $3.978bn while net collections were $3.75bn, which surpassed the target of $3.4bn by $350m.
Zimra said it collected a net surplus of $350m, reducing the projected fiscal deficit of $400m by 87.5%.
“As we move into 2018, we will upscale and redouble our efforts to surpass the $4.3bn target, which is an increase of 26.47% from the 2017 revenue target.”