20 Oct 2022

Botswana Unified Revenue Services (BURS) has reportedly surpassed its revenue collection target by 2.7 per cent for the year 2022/2023.

Briefing the media on Wednesday, BURS Commissioner General, Ms Jeanette Makgolo said from April to September 2022, BURS collected P23.851 billion as opposed to P23.217 billion, thus surpassing the target by P634 million or 2.7 per cent.

Ms Makgolo attributed the achievement to hard work and commitment in addressing performance gaps as well as responding to the current business challenges.

She said Value Added Tax garnered P4.788 billion whereas Income Tax and Customs receipts gathered P7.024 billion and P12.039 billion respectively.

She said the performance of their ICT systems had significantly improved, adding that before the end of October 2022, a tender for implementation audit of their tax administration systems, which is geared towards modernising BURS ICT infrastructure, would be issued.

Ms Makgolo said this would ensure enhanced tax compliance and effective taxpayer services, and re-engineer internal business processes for optimal business performance.

She said they were implementing robust access controls in their buildings to ensure optimum security of the taxpayer information and physical security of both customers and BURS employees.

This, she said would ensure the scanning of personnel upon entering and leaving the BURS buildings and restricting customers to client service areas.

Ms Makgolo said BURS had awarded the digital marking and tracking solution for excisable goods project to Authentix company on a self-liquidating basis for a maximum period of 10 years.

She said the introduction of this solution was prompted by among others; the influx of smuggling of excisable products, which was exacerbated by high duties and levies on such goods and the rife counterfeiting practice in the market.

She said once fully implemented, the new digital monitoring programme would help support excise revenue collections benefiting citizens and compliant industry players alike.

“It is expected to ensure that legitimate duties and taxes are paid on all of these imported and manufactured products and provide a fair and level playing field for all compliant manufacturers, importers and traders, while protecting consumers from harmful and substandard illicit and smuggled goods,” she said.

The commissioner general said to improve the efficient collection of VAT, BURS was in the process of introducing an electronic billing solution that would further minimise VAT fraud.

Ms Makgolo revealed that BURS had completed the benchmarking process and the procurement process to engage a project manager for the implementation of the solution was underway.

She said Botswana and Namibia had signed an agreement to turn the Mamuno/Trans-Kalahari border into a one-stop border post by November 30, 2023, adding that in the meantime, they had agreed to operate the border posts on a 24-hour basis, effective April 1, 2023. ENDS/BOPA/TMK/20.10.22