URA House, also URA Tower, is a building in Uganda, that serves as the headquarters of Uganda Revenue Authority (URA). URA Headquarters is located in a 22-storey skyscraper, known as Uganda Revenue Authority House (URA Tower), located at Plot M 193/4 Kinnawataka Road, Nakawa Industrial Area, in the Nakawa Division of the city of Kampala, Uganda’s capital and largest city. This is about 6.5 kilometres (4 mi), by road, east of the city center. The coordinates of the agency’s headquarters are 0°19’48.0″N 32°37’10.0″E (Latitude:0.330000; Longitude:32.619444).
Prior to 2015, the offices of URA were scattered in multiple rented locations across the city of Kampala. As of August 2016, URA spent US$3.5 million in rent and US$1.5 million in operational expenses annually.
In February 2015, the agency began construction of a 22-storey skyscraper to consolidate all the agency offices in the city under one roof and save money in rent and operational expenses. Completion was scheduled for 2018. URA plans to use the savings to improve its upcountry offices.
As of July 2018, the building was nearly complete, with commissioning expected during the second half of 2018. The tarmac road, Walusimbi Lane, from Nakawa to the new building, has been completed at a cost of USh2.57 billion (approx. US$680,000), funded by the Ugandan government. The URA House itself was budgeted at USh140 billion (approx. US$37 million), in construction costs.
On 19 January 2019, the president of Uganda Yoweri Museveni, officially commissioned the completed skyscraper.
The building rises 22 floors above ground, with usable space of 26,021 square metres (280,088 sq ft). Maximum occupancy is calculated at 1,700 people. There is provision for underground parking for 360 cars, and surface parking for 710 vehicles. The parking structure measures 12,923 square metres (139,102 sq ft), on five levels for parking and the sixth level designed with space for a breastfeeding centre for staff.
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1991 |
| Jurisdiction | Government of Uganda |
| Headquarters | URA House, Nakawa, Kampala, Uganda |
| Employees | 2,900+ (2015) |
| Agency executives | |
| Parent agency | Uganda Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development |
| Website | www |
The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) is a government revenue collection agency established by the Parliament of Uganda. Operating under the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, the URA is responsible for enforcing, assessing, collecting, and accounting for the various taxes imposed in Uganda.
Allen Kagina was charged with eliminating corruption in the URA when she was appointed Commissioner General in 2004. Minister of Information Rose Namayanja said, “Under the leadership of Ms Allen Kagina, we have successfully cleaned URA and tax collections on a year-to-year basis have gone up. The situation is not as bad as it used to be.” According to the Daily Monitor, this view was shared by the president of Uganda.
In 1991, when URA was established, tax collection was 6.83% of GDP, amounting to UGX:133 billion. In 2015, taxes collected were 13% of GDP, amounting to UGX:11.2 trillion. URA targets to increase tax collection to at least 16% of GDP by 2020
On 29th March 2020, the President of the Republic of Uganda H.E. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni appointed John Musinguzi Rujoki as Commissioner General. He replaced lawyer Doris Akol who was appointed on 27 October 2014 by then Ugandan Finance Minister Maria Kiwanuka. Allen Kagina who served at the helm of the URA for two consecutive five-year terms prior to Doris before retiring. To accommodate the majority of its staff in one location, URA built a 22-storey tower adjacent to its headquarters at Nakawa, completed in 2018, and officially commissioned in January 2019
