IT is heartening to note that Zambia’s tax fulfilment levels have considerably improved from the ranking of 78 per cent in 2013 to 46 per cent in 2014.
This is according to the latest joint study by the World Bank Group and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) dubbed “Paying Taxes 2016” launched in Lusaka on Wednesday night.
Statistically, this has put the country in the first set of the total of 189 countries included in the study.
PwC Tax director for  Zambia, Jyoti Mistry ascribed the trend to the recently  introduced  tax online and administration systems by Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA).
We agree with Ms Mistry that tax was a major signpost in improving tax administration and compliance and that it would further assist both tax payers in terms of reducing tax compliance costs and ZRA in terms of tax collection.
Like Ms Mistry we hope that this would be extended to other strategic matters such as tax policy and tax legislation that would further enhance tax system in the country.
It is also reassuring to note that the PwC and the World Bank Group have further noted that the sub-sectors show that the total taxes tax rate increased marginally from 15.5 per cent in 2013 to 18.6 per cent in 2014.
The report further stated that although there was an increase in the total tax rate, there was significant improvement n the time to comply and the payment sub-indicators.
The time to comply has decreased substantially from 177 to 157 from 2013 t 2014 with payment indicators decreasing from 37 to 15.5 between 2013 and 2014.
The current paying taxes publication provides a unique analysis on tax systems for over 180 countries across the globe, among other things ranking of tax compliance system of participating countries on three key indicators.
The three are; the total tax rate, the time t comply and the number of payments.
As a newspaper, we have written incessantly on the need for Government to broaden its tax base by taxing people in the informal sector.
This should include people in the informal sector who make profit from selling merchandise but surprisingly don’t pay tax to Government.
In a Christian nation that Zambia is, paying tax is not only legal but a religious obligation since in Matthew 22:17-21, the Bible tells us Pharisees asked Jesus a question: “Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me?
Show me the coin used for paying the tax.”
They brought Him a denarius, and He asked them, “Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?”
“Caesar’s,” they replied. Then He said to them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”
In full agreement, the Apostle Paul taught, “This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor” (Romans 13:6-7).
Tax compliance will enhance the ambitious and radical economic blueprint that President Edgar Lungu recently revealed to jump start the Zambian economy.
One of the recipes for a succesful implementation of Lungu’s design is adherence to paying tax by every citizen and institutions.
It is for this reason that government through ZRA must put measures to further criminalise tax evasion and other related retrogressive economic malpractises.
Everyone should remember, Christ’s dictum on tax-Give to Ceasar what belongs to Ceasar.