Online Reporter
Prosper Ndlovu,[email protected]
AFRICAN countries are embracing research-driven solutions to widen their knowledge base and technical capability to deal with the changing global taxation landscape, widening informality and rapid digitisation of economies to unlock more revenue for the development of the continent.
The African continent is entering a decisive period in global tax governance, one in which the ongoing dialogue on a United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation offers an opportunity to shape outcomes that are inclusive and equitable.
According to the African Tax Administration Forum (ATAF), this moment demands a strong African knowledge base, one that is technically sound, contextually grounded, and courageous enough to challenge assumptions that do not fit Africa’s realities.
“The digital economy is expanding, revenue administrations are digitalizing, and the need for collaboration and coherence at national, regional and continental levels has never been greater,” ATAF executive secretary, Ms Mary Baine, said while speaking at the 10th African Tax Research Network (ATRN) Congress in Cape Town, South Africa this week.
“At the same time, persistent informality continues to challenge both policy and administration.
“Addressing it sustainably calls for more than slogans, it demands a deep, shared knowledge base that integrates economics, administration, law, technology, and political economy.”
Ms Baine commended ATRN for building a community for organic and independent thought leadership on taxation in Africa and growing a living knowledge base robust enough to inform context-specific dialogue, decisions, and implementation.
She also applauded scholars, tax officials, policymakers, students, peer reviewers, and editors who have contributed to the Africa tax narrative over the years.
“Over the years, the ATRN community has shown resilience and did not flinch even in adversity,” Ms Baine said.
“During COVID-19, when distance threatened collaboration and uncertainty tested resolve, you ensured continuity, curating research, convening debate, and keeping Africa’s tax discourse alive and forward-looking.
“Because of that resilience, ATRN is recognised as a place the continent can look for authoritative thought leadership on taxation.”
This year’s ATRN congress received 153 paper submissions, an all-time high that signals growing interest, and deepening quality of outcomes by researchers and practitioners as they test ideas and inform critical taxation decision making.
Delegates were informed of another milestone from the African Multidisciplinary Tax Journal (AMTJ), which has secured SCOPUS accreditation, a rare indexing that elevates the visibility and discoverability of African tax scholarship, strengthening citation impact and policy reach, enforcing rigorous editorial and methodological standards, as well as attracting new contributors who might have overlooked African journals in the past.
