Taxing with Evidence: Capacity Building and Pilot Experiments with the Kenya Revenue Authority

Increasing tax collection has become a key priority of developing countries aiming to increase economic development. In Kenya, “broadening the tax base through an enhanced taxpayer recruitment effort” constitutes the first pillar of the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA)’s Strategic Plan. In order to support this ambitious goal, researchers are working with IPA Kenya, J-PAL Africa, and KRA in a two-pronged project. First, they will work to build KRA’s capacity to use existing evidence and rigorously test alternative policy interventions. Second, they will design and pilot three experimental interventions to investigate whether improving the match between the cash flow and the frequency of tax payments increases compliance among small firms. The most promising of these will be studied in a full-scale randomized evaluation at a later stage. These pilot experiments will complement the internal capacity building efforts and serve as hands-on case studies for KRA’s research team.