- Initially, the levy was set at Sh18 per litre but the Kenya Roads Board (KRB) proposed a 39 per cent increase.
- Last week, the ex-Roads CS Kipchumba Murkomen addressed concerns raised by Kenyans on the proposal to increase the road maintenance levy
Image: FILE
Consumers will now pay the road maintenance levy at a new rate of Sh25 per litre, up from Sh18.
This is after the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) increased the rates on Sunday.
Initially, the levy was set at Sh18 per litre but the Kenya Roads Board (KRB) proposed a 39 per cent increase.
Despite the increment, pump prices dropped by Sh1 for petrol, Sh1.50 for diesel and Sh1.30 for kerosine.
“The prices are inclusive of the 16 per cent Value Added Tax (VAT) in line with the provisions of the Finance Act 2023, the Tax Laws (Amendment) Act 2020 and the revised rates for excise duty adjusted for inflation as per Legal Notice No. 194 of 2020,” EPRA said in a statement.
Last week, the ex-Roads CS Kipchumba Murkomen addressed concerns raised by Kenyans on the proposal to increase the road maintenance levy saying it will not in any way impact fuel prices or the cost of living.
He said the aim was to bridge the financing gap in the maintenance of roads, saying the current collections which average Sh80 billion annually are not sufficient.
Murkomen acknowledged that there have been fears among Kenyans that the plan would negatively impact their financial situation.
“From the views we have received, many Kenyans are worried that an increase in the levy will result in a rise in the cost of living and fuel prices," Murkomen said in a statement.
Murkomen had said that should EPRA not impose the levy, most roads constructed in the last decade would go into ruins.
He explained that contractors were mandated to maintain a road for three years and then shift the responsibility to the national government.
According to the former CS, it was unreasonable for the government to spend billions of shillings constructing roads and fail to maintain them.
He has projected that with the current trend, the financial gap is expected to hit Sh315 billion in the 2028-29 financial year.
Murkomen revealed that there has been a considerable increase in the country's road network from 166,451 kilometres in 2016 to the current 239,122 kilometres and which requires regular maintenance.
Most of these abandoned roads, he said, are under the Low Volume Seal programme which have never been maintained in the last 10 years and are on the verge of being wiped away altogether.
“The Roads Maintenance Levy Review is, therefore, intended to fill this gap,” he said.