Kenya has ranked 10th in Africa in tax and revenue mobilisation, scoring 67.9 points out of 100 in 2025, according to the 2026 Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG).

The country’s score represents an improvement of 4.6 points since 2016, with the report classifying Kenya’s performance under “Increasing Improvement”, meaning the pace of progress accelerated from 2021.

“Kenya’s performance has improved by 4.6 points since 2016 and is classified as Increasing Improvement, meaning that progress has accelerated since 2021,” the report says.

The ranking comes at a time when the government is seeking to increase Kenya’s tax-to-GDP ratio from about 13.5 per cent to 20 per cent under the Medium-Term Revenue Strategy (MTRS) 2024/25-2026/27.

The Kenya Revenue Authority has also been pursuing higher revenue collections through measures aimed at improving tax compliance and administration. KRA’s official revenue reporting for the 2025/26 financial year provides the latest performance data on the authority’s collections.

Kenya’s 67.9-point score placed it behind South Africa, Côte d’Ivoire, Namibia, Lesotho, Senegal and four other African countries.

South Africa topped the continental ranking with a score of 92.4, followed by Côte d’Ivoire at 83.3, Namibia at 80, Lesotho at 79 and Senegal at 77.8.

“In the 2026 IIAG, South Africa is the highest-scoring country within the Tax & Revenue Mobilisation indicator in 2025, with a score of 92.4. Interestingly, South Africa’s score has remained around the 90-point mark across the whole decade (2016-2025), suggesting a robust and mature taxation capacity,” the report says.

The Mo Ibrahim Foundation’s IIAG measures governance performance across Africa and assesses countries over a 10-year period. The 2026 edition covers the period from 2016 to 2025.

The tax and revenue mobilisation ranking assesses the ability of African states to generate domestic resources needed to finance public services and government programmes.

Kenya’s improved score comes amid continued efforts to expand the country’s revenue base and improve tax compliance.

The National Treasury’s medium-term revenue strategy seeks to raise the amount of revenue collected relative to the size of the economy, with the government targeting a tax-to-GDP ratio of 20 per cent.

Despite Kenya’s improvement over the decade, its score remains significantly below the continent’s top performers, particularly South Africa, whose score has remained around the 90-point mark throughout the period assessed.

At the bottom of the ranking were Libya, Sudan, South Sudan, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Comoros and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The countries recorded scores of 2.8, 11.8, 12.1, 22.5, 25, 25.8 and 29.6, respectively.