AFRICAN TAX ADMINISTRATION FORUM

1ST STEERING GROUP MEETING

7 – 8 FEBRUARY 2009, CAPE TOWN

COMMUNIQUé

  1. Over the past two days, we, the Tax Commissioners of Botswana, Cameroon, Ghana, Rwanda, South Africa and Ugandacomprising the ATAF Steering Group and our respective Senior Officials making up the Technical Task Team, together withsome representatives from development partners active in Africa on tax issues, met in Cape Town, South Africa on 7 – 8 February 2009.
  1. This meeting emanated from the commitment we made at the “International Conference on Taxation, State Building and Capacity Development in Africa” held in Pretoria on the 28 - 29August 2008 to take forward the process of establishing the African Tax Administration Forum.
  1. The meeting also provided an opportunity for us to reflect on the impact of the current global financial crisis, its implications for tax administrations in Africa, and noted the importance for ATAF to take centre stage and demonstrate leadership in mobilizing domestic resources.
  1. The gathering further provided us the opportunity to reflect on issues around Tax Policy and Administrationand the need to boost revenue collection, at a central level for taxes but also at local level for the provision of basic services.We agreed that tax provides along-term financial platform for sustainable development, strengthens democracy and reinforces state building and is an antidote to long term aid dependency. We further reflected on organisational capacity and resourcing as well as the need to address the serious implementation challenges that we face in our respective Administrations.
  1. We agreed:
  2. On the formation of an interim secretariat hosted by SARS to implement the ATAF roadmap (attached);
  3. On the adoption of the Roadmap which provides a framework of 2009, 2010 and beyond;
  4. To finalise the draft Constitution and By – Laws toward the formal establishment of ATAF;
  5. To develop a Communications strategy; and
  6. To mobilise research capacity for the studies on the state of Tax policy and administration in Africa.
  1. The meeting further provided an occasion to engage with some representatives of our development partners, who expressed interest in supporting ATAF in the areas of:
  2. Establishing an interim secretariat for the ATAF Steering Group;
  3. Research on tax systems in Africa;
  4. Technical support;
  5. Diagnostic studies;
  6. Working towards the establishment of an African Tax Centre.
  1. After a very successful and constructive meeting, the ATAF Steering Group decided:
  1. to inform Heads of African Tax Administrations of the outcomes of our deliberations;
  2. To publicise as widely as possible the progress on the establishment of ATAF; and
  3. to meet in April2009 in Rwandaon the margins of the conference dealing with small and micro enterprises to further prepare for the launch of ATAF.

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