The Role of Information Technology to Enhance Property Tax Revenue in Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia

Public finance theory suggests that property tax is an ideal local tax. But it’s also a ‘data-hungry’ tax, making it difficult and costly to administer properly— especially at the local government level where capacity, skills and resources are often lacking. Given its high data demands, property tax administration lends itself to the application of modern information and communication technology (ICT) systems. Over the last 40 to 50 years, however, studies have shown that weak administration is the core reason for poor revenue performance, particularly issues of data compilation and management, lack of transparency, poor billing and collection practices and weak enforcement. This paper is a 2-page brief summary of Working Paper 88 by William McCluskey, Riël Franzsen, Mundia Kabinga and Chabala Kasese