Sudanese parliament to discuss imposition of new taxes on telecommunications

November 10, 2013 (KHARTOUM) – The national assembly’s economic committee started deliberations on a draft bill endorsed by the Sudanese cabinet to increase the value of telecommunication taxes to 2.5 % of total revenue, a move that drew concern among these companies.

“These [telecom] companies are already saddled with large fees and taxes,” the Director of Corporate Affairs at MTN Telecom Abdullah Al Fayed warned.

Fayed said that MTN is keen to maintain the value of the services provided to customers and pointed that they made their position clear to the parliament.

He said he expects to come up with a vision that is in the interests of consumers and businesses.

The chairman of parliament ‘s economic committee Omer Ali al-Amin stressed that they are still “in discussions with the relevant parties” and no final decision was made.

Al-Amin said that their goal is to safeguard the interests of the Finance ministry and telecommunications companies alike while working to encourage investment in the telecom sector.

Reuters says that Sudan had the highest sales tax on mobile in services in the Arab world, according to a September report by Arab Advisors Group, deterring investment in what is a vital industry for a country still reeling from South Sudan’s succession that led to the loss of three-quarters of Khartoum’s oil output.

Initially the Sudanese government planned to impose a 30% profit tax on telecom operators but delayed that until 2015-end and decided instead to replace it with the 2.5% levy on total income.

(ST)