Revenue collected from tax in the first half of the current fiscal year has shown an 8.6pc increase compared to the same period from last year, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) disclosed during his latest address to the parliament last week. A week ahead of the Prime Minister’s address, the Ministry of Revenues announced that it had collected 98.67 billion Br in taxes during the first half of the current fiscal year, 23.5 billion Br short of its plan. Outdated technology, lousy customer service, the public’s lacklustre attitude toward paying taxes and weak coordination between stakeholders were among the reason for the shortfall, according to Sisay Bahiru, director of strategy, planning and project management at the Ministry. Ethiopia is listed among the lowest countries in tax revenue collection in sub-Saharan Africa.