This archive report was first published on 19 July 2019.
Nairobi County government is set to introduce new levies and taxes to finance its 35.2 billion shillings annual budget for the 2019/20 financial year.
According to the Nairobi City County Finance Bill 2019, households in the city will pay a fire certificate fee of 2,000 shillings per annum, in addition to new monthly garbage collection charges ranging from 100 shillings for informal settlements to 600 shillings for high-end suburbs.
Residents and businesses in the capital city will also pay a Sh1,000 health inspection fee for keeping dogs or cats, among other new taxes and levies.
The city county projects that it will raise 17.3 billion shillings through new levies and taxes, while the remainder will be through county allocation by the national treasury.
However, the move has been met with criticism, with many residents expressing concerns over the increasing rates and poor service delivery from the city managers.
The county is struggling with poor service delivery, including uncollected garbage, potholed roads, and soaring crime, despite residents continuing to pay high rates to the county government.
It remains to be seen whether the Nairobi county assembly will pass the bill or reject it altogether.
