Gov’t revenues rise 11 pct

Government revenues totalled more than $700 million over the first four months of the year, an 11 per cent year-on-year increase, data from the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) show. In total, the revenue made by the General Department of Taxation (GDT) rose by about 30 per cent while revenue from the General Department Customs and Excise (GDCE) rose slightly, by about four per cent. Revenue from cities and provinces went up by 33.5 per cent. … Stephen Higgins, former CEO of ANZ Royal Bank said that corruption is one among  other factors—“capacity and capability in revenue raising areas is important. Improving and streamlining customs would make a big difference, and is something that most businesses would want to see.” The opposition party, however, claims the government loses between $400 million to $500 million due to corruption by officials. “The improvement of taxation is not an easy job,” Suzuki said. “Many developing countries, not only Cambodia, have been tackling this issue. I hope [that] both the government and donors will continue their efforts on this issue for Cambodia.” At the same time, government’s expense budget [excluding the expenses for other projects that are not paid from the national treasury] is worth $443 million, a decrease of 5.8 per cent compared to the same period last year.

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/2013062166406/Business/gov-t-revenues-rise-11-pct.html