KRA will not renew Humphrey Wattanga’s contract and has named Dr Lilian Nyawanda as acting Commissioner General.
Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has replaced its Commissioner General, Humphrey Wattanga.
The agency says its board will not renew his contract, and he has been sent on terminal leave with immediate effect.
Dr Lilian Nyawanda, the current Commissioner of Customs and Border Control, will act as Commissioner General as KRA runs a competitive hiring process.
KRA announced the leadership change on Wednesday in a public statement.
The board, chaired by Ndiritu Muriithi, did not give reasons for the non renewal. It credited Wattanga for “dedicated service and leadership,” and pointed to organisational restructuring reforms during his tenure.
Wattanga took the role in 2023. He was seen as part of President William Ruto’s push to tighten tax compliance, meaning efforts to reduce tax evasion and improve collection.
KRA sits at the centre of Kenya’s fiscal plans. It is responsible for collecting most government revenue, including customs duties at the border and domestic taxes.
A sudden change at the top can affect execution, even if strategy stays the same. For startups and tech enabled businesses, tax administration changes often show up as shifts in audits, filing enforcement, and how fast refunds and exemptions are processed.
Nyawanda’s interim appointment also matters because customs and border control touches import heavy sectors, including hardware, devices, and e-commerce logistics. Operators will watch whether KRA keeps the same approach to data driven enforcement, meaning using systems and reporting to detect non compliance.
The next signal is who wins the full time job, and whether the government pairs the leadership change with new compliance campaigns or system updates for taxpayers.
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