We are a research network improving the quality of tax policy and administration in sub-Saharan Africa.
We collaboratively generate policy-relevant research and build African research capacity in the area of taxation.
There is great potential for benefit from closer cooperation between tax administrators and researchers. Based on our recent experiences, the ICTD and the Uganda Revenue Authority developed a set of “principles of engagement” between tax administrations and researchers. Learn more about our approach here.
The ICTD’s African Property Tax Initiative (APTI) was recently featured at the Urban Age conference in Addis Ababa. The conference, on the theme “Developing Urban Futures” was jointly organised by LSE Cities at the London School of Economics and the Alfred Herrhausen Gesellschaft. It convened urban experts, policymakers and practitioners from sub-Saharan Africa and other…
The newly published book, Taxing Africa, offers a comprehensive and accessible introduction to the crucial debates around taxation and development in Africa. Written by leading international experts, it examines issues from tax evasion by multinational corporations and African elites to how ordinary people navigate complex webs of ‘informal’ local taxation, examining the challenges and the…
The ICTD is calling for research proposals in relation to the Ethiopian Tax Research Network (ETRN). The ETRN is an initiative of the ICTD funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and hosted at the Ethiopian Development Research Institute. The ETRN is a network of Ethiopian researchers and practitioners, with the main objective of supporting…
Over the past decade, international attention has increasingly focused on the potential contribution of taxation to improved development outcomes. In our recent book, Taxing Africa: Coercion, Reform and Development, we offer an overview of these issues and challenges in Africa. A major objective of the book is to highlight major political questions about taxation in Africa,…
Developed countries have recently begun considering wealth taxes to raise revenue and curb rising inequality. Should developing countries follow suit? On the one hand, developing countries are often afflicted by acute income and wealth inequality (Alvaredo et al., 2018), and could thus benefit from a more progressive tax system. On the other hand, the question…
