Out of the total 336.7 billion Birr annual tax income of Ethiopia for the budget year concluded July 7, 2022, about 50.7 billion Birr (close to one billion US dollar) is secured from merchandizes seized from tax dodgers and people engaged in contraband trade, the Ministry of Revenue said.
This is indicated today during the evaluation meeting of the directors of the Ministry to assembled to assess the performance of the Ministry for the past year. The goods captured from the tax dodgers and contrabandists is 36 percent more than the money secured the previous year.
It is stated that the goods are captured from illegal traders who smuggle merchandizes from Ethiopia to neighboring countries as well as from neighboring countries into Ethiopia, and from business people who were found in tax fraud.
During the evaluation meeting, the Minister of Revenue Lake Ayalew indicated that the country has managed to secure the over 50 billion Birr through the collaborations of Ethiopian intelligence service, federal police, Ethiopian army, regional security forces, and tips from whistleblowers.