Improving tax policy and administration in lower-income countries through collaborative research and engagement.

Featured Research

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Report

Taxing Smarter: Advancing Reform Through Research and Partnership

July 2026
Policy Brief

Governing the Exchange of Tax Data in Digital Public Infrastructure: Law, Rights, and the Protection of Citizens in Data-Driven Systems

July 2026
Daisy Ogembo & Hannelore Niesten
Journal Article

Cashless tax systems: voluntary vs. mandated digital payments in Eswatini

July 2026
Fabrizio Santoro, Phindile T. Masuku & Tanele Magongo

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News and events

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News
the north to south road and the landscape in a village near the city of Myeik in the south in Myanmar in Southeastasia.
July 2026
From Afghanistan to Venezuela, new research shows how roadblocks shape governance and everyday life in conflict contexts

A new special issue in the leading development studies journal Development and Change puts roadblock politics squarely on the academic agenda….
News
A quarter of a globe on top of a pile of gold coins beside three uneven stacks of coins.
June 2026
New ICTD research shows uneven adoption of international tax standards by lower-income countries

This paper by Martin Hearson, Frederich Heitmüller and Florian Dierich, draws together findings across all seven country case studies, identifying shared patterns while also accounting for the ways country experiences diverge….
Event
Webinar graphic for “Comparative Perspectives on International Tax from the Global South,” 17 July 2026, 14:00–15:00 UTC on Zoom, featuring speakers from ICTD, University of Oxford, WU Vienna, and Makerere University.
7 July 2026
Webinar: Comparative perspectives on international tax from the global South

This webinar launches the ‘Comparative Perspectives on International Tax from the Global South’ project, started by the International Centre for Tax and Development (ICTD), in 2024. The project examines how governments in seven countries — Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Uganda, and Zambia — engage with international tax standards in practice, focusing on exchange of information, bilateral tax treaties, transfer pricing rules, and digital services taxation….

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Watch lectures, download reading lists and literature reviews, and explore our resources on 6 tax and development topics.

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Latest Opinion & Analysis

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Young students in white uniform raising their hands in the foreground, facing a teacher at the front of the classroom.
July 2026|
Blog

Expanding the tax base through Digital Public Infrastructure: a framework for Uganda’s education system

by Kaijamahe Walter Hillary

In May 2026, the Uganda Bureau of Statistics disseminated the maiden Baseline Education Census, mapping the country’s private pre-primary and primary schools, recording ownership structures, teacher payrolls, GPS coordinates, and licensing status. For the first time, Uganda has a dataset containing precisely the information the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) needs to identify which private schools are not paying their taxes….
Small business shack in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with people walking in front.
June 2026|
Blog

Ethiopia’s presumptive tax system: why daily sales estimation needs rethinking

by Zerihun Asegid

The widespread use of daily sales estimation as a principal assessment method shows a deeper structural problem in Ethiopia’s presumptive tax system….
Aerial photo of a tomato market at Mile 12 in Lagos, Nigeria.
June 2026|
Blog

Taxing the informal economy: should businesses formalise or should tax systems adapt?

by Kanuda M. Buluba

Across Africa, discussions on taxing the informal economy often begin with a familiar assumption that informal businesses remain outside the tax system because they are unregistered, invisible, or non-compliant….
Ian Kananura on his career in Uganda and the future of tax policy in Africa
May 2026|
Blog

From real estate to crypto in Uganda: navigating tax policy in a changing world

by Ian Kananura Mwesigye & Stephanie Alkoussa

In this interview, Ian Kananura Mwesigye, a 2018/19 alum of ICTD’s Research on Tax and Development course, reflects on his career journey, the growing importance of research-informed tax policy, and why domestic revenue mobilisation will be central to Africa’s future….
May 2026|
Blog

The future of development starts with getting tax right

by Giulia Mascagni

Taxation is a central part of a new era of development that has fiscal resilience, system change and people at its core. Getting tax reform right, however, is not just a challenge for governments that have traditionally been recipients of aid….
Digital Eye Pakistan
May 2026|
Blog

Using technology to encourage voluntary compliance: Digital Eye in Pakistan

With support from the REMIT programme, Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue is deploying new technologies to try and boost tax collections, and Digital Eye is leading the way….
Medium-rise buildings along a road, with a prominent yellow building sticking out
April 2026|
Blog

The IRD is finding its mojo

by Mick Moore

The government recently promised to build the department a new HQ. Not entirely coincidentally, the IRD itself has recently begun to look more lively and pro-active….
One hundred dollar banknotes flying and streaming from white box, isolated on white background.
April 2026|
Blog

Why tax expenditure reporting is a missing link in financing for development

by Alexandra Readhead, Agustín Redonda, Christian von Haldenwang, Giovanni Occhiali, Giulia Mascagni & Harshil Parekh

With aid budgets shrinking and debt vulnerabilities mounting, the $4 trillion governments forgo annually through exemptions, credits, and preferential rates demands greater transparency and accountability. The Coalition on Tax Expenditure Reform argues that minimum reporting standards are a precondition for reform and should be a priority for the G7 and G20….
Customer making a contactless mobile payment using a smartphone and handheld card reader.
February 2026|
Blog

Unlocking inclusive digital payments and tax compliance in Africa: Insights from MWC Kigali

by Ludovic Bernad

How can inclusive digital payments improve tax compliance in Africa? Lessons from MWC Kigali highlight the role of affordability, interoperability, and digital public infrastructure….