EZULWINI – The Eswatini Revenue Service (ERS) recorded E14.612 billion in collections for the 2024/25 fiscal year, surpassing the government target of E14.556 billion and marking a 12.2% increase over the previous year, according to the agency’s Integrated Annual Report.
Commissioner General Brightwell Nkambule said the agency’s shift from a traditional authority to a service-oriented organization contributed to improved efficiency. “The tax-to-GDP ratio improved to 16.7%, up from 15.9%, while the cost of collection dropped to a historic low of 3.34 cents for every Lilangeni collected,” Nkambule noted.
The first year of ERS’s 2024–2027 Strategic Plan, “Digitalised and Data Driven; With Our Partners,” saw the rollout of the Oracle Revenue Management & Billing System (ORMB) and an upgrade to ASYCUDA World customs system.
The agency also expanded its mandate, taking over company registration, trading licenses, and liquor licensing fees. Measures to ease business operations included launching an Automated Contact Centre System in June 2024, integrating Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) solutions with three local banks, and increasing the number of Authorized Economic Operators from two to 11 to speed up border processes. A new website and mobile application were also introduced.
Board Chairman David Dlamini said taxpayer satisfaction was rising. “The Net Promoter Score jumped from 62.5 to 77.7,” he said, adding that voluntary compliance reached 70.5%, supported by the Bafundzise educational campaign.
Internally, ERS improved its Employee Value Proposition and expanded mental health support, raising its employee engagement score from 3.68 to 3.76.
The report also acknowledged challenges in the global economy, with world growth slowing to 3.3% in 2024 due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict and US-China trade tensions. Domestically, Eswatini’s GDP growth eased to 3.6% from 5.0% the previous year. ERS flagged potential risks from the withdrawal of some USAID funding and new tariffs on African exports.
Despite these hurdles, ERS continues to pursue full voluntary compliance and works with international partners, including the IMF, World Bank, and SACU, to strengthen anti-smuggling efforts and internal audits, including investigations into staff integrity.
Sectoral performance showed manufacturing, mining, and quarrying led growth with a 25% increase in tax payments, followed by wholesale and retail trade, transport and storage, and accommodation and food services at 7%. Real estate activities fell slightly by 4%.
Corporate income tax registrations rose 8.4% to 18,145, personal income tax registrations increased 5.7% to 42,484, and PAYE registrations edged up 1.1% to 9,425. In contrast, VAT registrations dropped 31.1% to 3,837, reflecting a clean-up of inactive or noncompliant entities.
The ERS’s domestic tax-to-GDP ratio, a key performance indicator, increased to 16.7%, while total revenue-to-GDP, including SACU receipts, improved to 31.7%.
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