This archive report was first published on 4 September 2019.
On September 1, 2019, the Kenya Revenue Authority announced a temporary suspension on a notice to tax various commodities, including bottled water, juices, sodas, non-alcoholic beverages, and cosmetics.
The suspension was made in response to a budget Kenya Gazette Notice issued earlier, which would have required the listed goods to be affixed with excise stamps, regardless of whether they were imported or manufactured locally.
This temporary relief comes as a welcome reprieve to manufacturers, who would have faced increased production costs, and consumers, who would have paid more for the listed goods.