I received a text message from Airtel this morning after the government announced the new excise duty charges, it’s changed from 15% to 20%. The new amendment will not only affect airtime but will also affect your industry services. The telkom company has changed their voice tariff from the usual KSh 2 to KSh 2.78 per minute. On the other hand, the company will not increase data and voice bundle prices which is a good move since a lot more people rely on the company for internet services. However, the rates are still favourable. As Kenyans await to see if other companies will revise their rates it’s reassuring to know that Airtel has clearly tried their best to keep reasonable rates. This move has been made due to the fact that the Treasury amended the 2021 finance bill that introduced digital service tax to all Kenyans and foreigners operating in the country. This has been a huge inconvenience to a lot of Kenyans who have been working from home and a lot of people who rely on online services for their daily tasks and businesses. Earlier this year the tax had only been proposed for non-residents but now we’re all on this ship together. With the new and favourable rates that airtel has the big question would then be, will there be a digital migration? Will people move to companies that offer better rates? We hope that companies with already high tariffs will consider remaining the same instead of adding.
