cfs

 

A Call for Bold Student Voices

Taxes sound boring until you realise they decide whether your hospital has medicine, whether your roads have tarmac, and whether a billionaire pays less to the government than your mama running a kibanda. The people making these decisions rarely look like you, rarely sound like you, and almost never ask what you think.

We want to change that.

The Committee on Fiscal Studies is launching a new kind of platform. We want 10 university students to step up and deliver a five-minute talk that makes fiscal policy feel urgent, human, and genuinely interesting. No jargon. No PowerPoint slides crammed with bullet points. Just you, a microphone, and an idea worth spreading.

 

What Should You Talk About?

Pick one of these areas and make it yours:

  1. Why should Kenya tax the ultra-wealthy, and what happens if we do not?
  2. How do we make global tech giants pay their fair share when their money moves faster than our laws?
  3. Should we be cautious about data centres popping up across Africa, and what are we trading for those investments?
  4. How do we stop money from bleeding out of Africa through illicit channels, and who benefits when we fail?
  5. What happens to jobs and incomes when artificial intelligence can do what humans used to do?

 

What Makes a Good Talk?

Your five minutes should walk us through four things.

  • First, show us the problem and make us feel why it matters, who it hurts, and what is at stake.
  • Second, tell us how it can be fixed, not with vague wishes but with actual ideas about policy, politics, or institutional change.
  • Third, help us imagine what the future looks like if we get this right.
  • Fourth, challenge political leaders and those who fund development to pay attention to what they have been ignoring.

The best talks will be clever without being confusing. They will be passionate without being preachy. They will teach us something and leave us wanting more.

 

Who Can Apply?

Any university student in Kenya. Any discipline. You do not need to be studying economics or law. You need to care about these issues and have something sharp to say about them.

 

How to Apply

Send an email to Dr. Lyla Latif: latif@uonbi.ac.ke with a pitch of no more than 300 words. Tell us what you want to argue and how you plan to make it memorable. We are not looking for essays. We are looking for sparks.

 

What Happens Next?

We will read every submission. The most promising candidates will be invited to audition in person. The top 10 will be selected to present at our launch event, with mentorship, visibility, and a chance to join a growing network of young fiscal thinkers across the continent

 

 

 

 

 

Commitment to Financial Integrity and Anti Illicit Finance Practices

The Committee on Fiscal Studies is committed to the highest standards of integrity and ethical conduct. We maintain a zero-tolerance policy towards corruption, illicit financial flows, money laundering, bribery, and related financial misconduct. All individuals associated with our work, whether as staff, interns, consultants, or partners are expected to uphold these principles without exception. We wish to make clear that our institution does not knowingly engage with or provide platforms to individuals involved in corrupt practices, fraudulent activities, or violations of financial integrity standards. We categorically dissociate ourselves from any such conduct. We implement enhanced due diligence protocols for all prospective team members, including comprehensive background screening and verification of professional conduct. These measures apply across all roles and engagement types. Our work in fiscal governance, tax policy, and public finance demands unwavering commitment to legitimacy and transparency. We take this responsibility to our stakeholders, the organisations we serve, and the broader development community with utmost seriousness.