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Showing 1-12 of 12 Blogs
Wide shot of a large group of people facing the camera.
March 2025|
Blog

Reasons to be Optimistic about Tax and the Informal Sector

by Max Gallien & Vanessa van den Boogaard

There are many reasons to be anxious about the taxation of informal sectors in lower income…
picture of Makola market in Ghana
January 2025|
Blog

Effective and Equitable Formalisation within the Financing for Development Agenda

by Max Gallien

Max Gallien argues for key changes to the draft text of the Financing for Development outcome document, given that dominant strategies for formalising and taxing the informal economy are often ineffective and highly regressive. …
Man in protective gear throwing a box full of smuggled Malboro cigarettes in a shredding truck to destroy them.
June 2024|
Blog

Three myths on smuggling and taxes

by Max Gallien

Few topics attract as many myths and misconceptions as smuggling. As an activity that is more…
Two market traders walking by cars with baskets of goods over their heads
March 2023|
Blog

Ghana’s e-levy is unfair to the poor and misses its revenue target: A lesson in mobile money tax design

by Vanessa van den Boogaard, Max Gallien, Nana Akua Anyidoho & Michael Rogan

The levy’s effects – on Ghana’s public finances, its poor, mobile money usage –have been at the centre of intense and polarising public conversations, much of it without empirical basis….
Red vodafone mobile money kiosk in Ghana
October 2022|
Blog

New data on the e-levy in Ghana: Unpopular tax on mobile money transfers is hitting the poor hardest

by Vanessa van den Boogaard, Max Gallien, Michael Rogan & Nana Akua Anyidoho

In Ghana, the “e-levy” has been linked to the current administration’s “Ghana Beyond Aid” strategy for reducing aid dependence….
woman-in-afghanistan
March 2022|
Blog

Why do armed groups tax? It’s not just about the money

by Vanessa van den Boogaard, Max Gallien, Ashley Jackson, Tanya Bandula-Irwin & Florian Weigand

In this blog, the authors argue that revenue is only one of several motives that explain why armed groups tax….
People_informal_market_Nigeria
November 2021|
Blog

The World Bank and IMF are using flawed logic in their quest to do away with the informal sector

by Vanessa van den Boogaard, Max Gallien & Michael Rogan

Many low and middle-income countries face a myriad of challenges. But policies that can address them…
Moroccan dirhams
October 2021|
Blog

Would Moroccans accept a state zakat fund? Should they?

by Vanessa van den Boogaard, Max Gallien, Soukayna Remmal & Umair Javed

Zakat can add up to big money. Although estimates vary, some suggest that global annual zakat…
image of a cannabis plant
June 2021|
Blog

Cannabis taxation – A new revenue source for development?

by Max Gallien, Giovanni Occhiali & Soukayna Remmal

In recent years, the legalisation of cannabis – initially for medical use, and increasingly for recreational…
Picture of a street vendor in a souk in Morocco
January 2021|
Blog

Informal Work and Auto-Entrepreneurship Laws in the Maghreb: What can Tunisia learn from Morocco?

by Max Gallien & Othmane Bourhaba

Informal economies in North Africa have frequently captured public attention in recent years. They not only…
Market with street vendors
April 2020|
Blog

Unpacking Formalisation: The need for a new research agenda on taxation and the informal economy

by Vanessa van den Boogaard & Max Gallien

ICTD Informality and Taxation blog series The ICTD’s Informality and Tax programme seeks to conduct, connect,…
Street vendors
April 2020|
Blog

To fight Covid-19, only the formal economy is getting tax breaks. The informal economy may be asked to foot the bill

by Vanessa van den Boogaard & Max Gallien

As the world grapples with the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, vulnerable workers in the informal…