African Tax Administration Forum

African Tax Administration Forum
AbbreviationATAF
FormationAugust 2008 (2008-08)
TypeIGO
HeadquartersPretoria, South Africa
Region served
Africa
Executive Secretary
Logan Wort
Main organ
Secretariat
Staff26
Websiteataftax.org
Map of Africa, with members of the African Tax Administration Forum highlighted in green.

The African Tax Administration Forum (ATAF) is an international organisation which provides a platform for cooperation among African tax authorities. First conceived during a meeting of 30 African tax commissioners with representatives of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in August 2008, it was launched in November 2009 in Kampala, Uganda.[1][2] Through mutual cooperation between member states, ATAF works towards increasing the level of voluntary tax compliance whilst combating tax evasion and avoidance. ATAF is supported by a group of donors including the UK's Department for International Development, the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, the African Development Bank, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit, Irish Aid, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (Finland), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Netherlands), the OECD, and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs.[3] It collaborates with African regional economic organisations, the Commonwealth Association of Tax Administrations, the Inter-American Center of Tax Administrations, the Centre de Rencontres et d'Etudes des Dirigeants des Administrations Fiscales, the Intra-European Organisation of Tax Administrations, and the International Centre for Tax and Development.[4]

Member nations

As of October 2015, there are 37 member nations:[5]

Capacity building

ATAF offers an online course in tax treaties as well as an executive master's in taxation, in partnership with two Senegalese schools and the Mauritius Revenue Authority. It also offers short courses on taxation and development in partnership with the International Centre for Tax and Development.[6] In 2015, ATAF launched the African Tax Research Network (ATRN), which will hold an annual congress for researchers to share their work.[7] In collaboration with the International Centre for Tax and Development, it will also offer research methods training and dissemination workshops to members of the ATRN.

Technical working groups

ATAF hosts technical working groups on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting, Indirect Taxes, Exchange of Information, and Transfer pricing. In April 2015 it held a consultative conference on BEPS, and provided feedback from its members to the OECD.[8] On exchange of information, ATAF has begun a three-year pilot program which aims to help African countries meet the standards to join the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes.[9]

Conferences

In October 2015, ATAF held its second international conference on tax in Africa, with the theme "Tax Compliance and Limiting Illicit financial flows".[10]

References

  1. ^ African Development Bank; Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development: Development Centre (2010). African Economic Outlook 2010. OECD Publishing. ISBN 978-92-64-08652-4.
  2. ^ International Development Committee, House of Commons, UK Parliament (2009). Aid under pressure: support for development assistance in a global economic downturn. The Stationery Office. p. 143. ISBN 978-0-215-53051-6.
  3. ^ "Donors". ATAF. 2015. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  4. ^ "Development Partners". ATAF. 2015. Archived from the original on 13 October 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  5. ^ "ATAF Member Countries". African Tax Administration Forum. Archived from the original on 13 October 2015. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  6. ^ "Tax and Development Short Course". Institute of Development Studies. 2015. Archived from the original on 22 May 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  7. ^ "African Tax Research Network Set Up". The Chronicle. 2015.
  8. ^ "New rules, same old paradigm". The Economist. 2015.
  9. ^ "Exchange of Information". ATAF. 2015.[permanent dead link‍]
  10. ^ "Illicit Financial Flows Grab Limelight at 2nd International Conference on Tax in Africa". GNN Liberia. 2015.[permanent dead link‍]


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