Research in Brief 72

Mobile money is widely seen as a powerful tool for enhancing financial inclusion and, potentially, improving the economic well-being of the poor.

As the mobile money sector, and its turnover, have grown, certain governments have increasingly viewed mobile money transactions as a potentially convenient tax handle.

The resulting tax measures are often controversial and draw sharp criticism from those who fear that they will undermine the growth of digital financial services.

The case study of Uganda highlights an interesting example of this trend and demonstrates the importance of careful tax policy design.

Authors

Adrienne Lees

Adrienne Lees is a Research Officer at the ICTD and a PhD student at the Department of Economics, University of Sussex.

Doris Akol

Doris Akol is a consultant on revenue administration. At the time of writing this paper, she was a Senior Policy and Engagement Advisor with the International Centre for Tax and Development (ICTD) Digitax Programme. Prior to that she was the Commissioner General at the Uganda Revenue Authority, a position she held until March 2020.
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