The Ethiopian Revenues and Customs Authority is to launch a toll free call center worth 3.4 million birr to be based in the
authority’s headquarters.
The call center is expected to transform the process of tax collection and administration. The call center installed by Tanzanian Techno Brian will be able to entertain 30 calls at the same time.
The authority has trained a dozen people, each specializing in specific tax issues to answer inquiries raised by tax payers who call in.
The call center will be available to tax payers during working hours to start off with and the system will require TIN numbers to provide answers. The system will also support a text service according to Mekonnen Tesfaye, general Manager of Techno Brain.The project was financed by Investment Climate Facility for Africa according to an agreement signed with the Ethiopian tax authority in July 2010 to transform tax administration in Ethiopia through modern facilities such as e-filing and call centers.
The projects have been granted a total budget of 2.3 million US dollars.
The E-filling project which enables tax payers to file their tax statements online was launched three weeks ago. The new system intended to reduce the time it takes to process tax payment and to limit the contact between tax collectors and taxpayers to control opportunities for corruption is being used by about 100 large tax payer.
Source: Addis Fortune
