Home » Page 2

Publications

Showing 12-23 of 352 publications
December 2020

How Effective has the TADAT Framework Been in Improving Tax Administration in Uganda?

by Doris Akol, Margaret Magumba, Patrick Loke, Milly Nalukwago Isingoma & Tina Kaidu

Like several other revenue administrations, prior to the introduction of the Tax Administration Diagnostic Assessment Tool (TADAT) in Uganda, there was no comprehensive standard tool for assessing revenue administration against internationally recognised good practices. Detailed assessment was spread across different facets of revenue administration and indicators were not standardised. The first TADAT assessment of Uganda’s…

Read more
December 2020

Gender and Tax Compliance: Firm Level Evidence from Ethiopia

by Seid Yimam & Fissha Asmare

Many Sub-Saharan African countries, characterised by government budget deficits, have been undergoing reforms and improvements to enhance tax revenue collection. However, such improvements often fall short of expectations and do not yield the expected revenue. These economies are highly vulnerable to tax avoidance and tax evasion, mainly due to the lack of a strong, modernised…

Read more
December 2020

What is Wrong with African Tax Administration?

by Mick Moore

National tax administrations in sub-Saharan Africa have undergone considerable reform in recent decades. In several respects, they are, on average, more reformed and more efficient than tax administrations in other low-income regions. Many have made major organisational changes, responding effectively to a number of major challenges. This includes the introduction of VAT, a rather complex…

Read more
December 2020

To File or Not To File? Another Dimension of Non-Compliance: The Eswatini Taxpayer Survey

by Fabrizio Santoro, Edward Groening, Winnie Mdluli & Mbongeni Shongwe

Non-filing of income tax takes place when taxpayers fail to submit a tax declaration, despite being liable to do so, thus becoming ghosts in the eyes of tax authorities. It is a widespread phenomenon in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Increasing evidence has been produced on non-filers in Rwanda, Uganda, Malawi, Kenya and Nigeria. Eswatini is no…

Read more
December 2020

Strengthening Tax-Accountability Links: Fiscal Transparency and Taxpayer Engagement in Ghana and Sierra Leone

by Vanessa van den Boogaard, Wilson Prichard, Rachel Beach & Fariya Mohiuddin

Taxation is high on the international development agenda, largely due to growing evidence that it can not only provide sustainable development funding, but also contribute to expanded responsiveness and accountability in government. This is because: (i) when forced to pay taxes citizens are more likely to feel ownership of government revenues, and demand benefits in…

Read more
December 2020

A Simplified Method for Taxing Multinationals for Developing Countries: Building on the ‘Amount B’ Proposal to Repair the Transactional Net Margin Method

by Michael C. Durst

The OECD’s Inclusive Framework is currently considering two substantial tax reform plans, Pillar One and Pillar Two. These are intended to develop a global consensus on methods for taxing the digitalised economy, but in their current form would have broad implications for international tax architecture in general, and particularly for the control of base erosion…

Read more
December 2020

The Taxation of the Digitalised Economy: An African Study

by Mustapha Ndajiwo

African economies need adequate revenues for development, but weak tax laws, illicit financial flows and aggressive tax planning have made it difficult for them to attain their full potential in raising revenue. Furthermore, the advent of digitalised business models, although with considerable potential to improve trade in Africa, has greatly exacerbated the two central challenges…

Read more
November 2020

Fiscal and Public Health Impact of a Change in Tobacco Excise Taxes in Ghana

by Ama Pokuaa Fenny, Aba Obrumah Crentsil, Christian Kwaku Osei & Felix Ankomah Asante

Cigarettes have generally become less affordable over time in developed economies, with increased taxes and low income growth, but more affordable in developing countries, where there have been minimal changes in taxes (Chaloupka et al. 2019). Studies by the WHO suggest that 80% of the world’s smokers live in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), and…

Read more
November 2020

Fiscal and Public Health Impact of a Change in Tobacco Excise Taxes in Ghana

by Ama Pokuaa Fenny, Aba Obrumah Crentsil, Christian Kwaku Osei & Felix Ankomah Asante

This paper predicts the fiscal and public health outcomes from a change in the excise tax structure for cigarettes in Ghana. More than 5,000 people are killed by diseases caused by tobacco every year in Ghana (Tobacco Atlas 2018). Currently the country has a unitary tax administration approach, with a uniform ad valorem tax structure…

Read more
November 2020

The Impact of Intergovernmental Transfers on Fiscal Behaviour of Local Governments in Ethiopia

by Dejene Mamo Bekana

This paper examines the effect of intergovernmental fiscal transfers on the fiscal behaviour of local governments in Ethiopia for the period 2004-2018. The empirical findings suggest that central government grants bolster state-level employment and expenditure. However, grants from the central government to states do not crowd out state-level revenue collection. Hence, this paper argues that…

Read more
November 2020

Strengthening Tax-Accountability Links: Fiscal Transparency and Taxpayer Engagement in Ghana and Sierra Leone

by Vanessa van den Boogaard, Wilson Prichard, Rachel Beach & Fariya Mohiuddin

There is increasingly strong evidence that taxation can contribute to expanded government responsiveness and accountability. However, such positive connections are not guaranteed. Rather, they are shaped by the political and economic context and specific policies adopted by governments and civil society actors. Without an environment that enables tax bargaining, there is a risk that taxation…

Read more
October 2020

How Best to Nudge Taxpayers? A Tailored Letter Experiment in Eswatini

by Fabrizio Santoro, Edward Groening, Winnie Mdluli & Mbongeni Shongwe

Tax collection in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) performs poorly, with a tax/GDP ratio of about 15% –this has severe repercussions for service delivery, growth and state-building. The ratio in high-income countries is 35%. Resource-constrained tax authorities in SSA are transitioning towards a new tax era, and implementing innovative compliance strategies such as ‘tax nudges’ – communication…

Read more