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URA hosts inaugural high level ATAF dialogue

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The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) is hosting a two-day inaugural high level tax dialogue under the African Tax Administration Forum (ATAF) at Serena Hotel, Kigo.

According to the URA Commissioner General, Doris Akol, the event under the theme ‘Forging the nexus between tax policy and tax administration in Africa’ has attracted officials of revenue authorities from over 30 African countries, particularly bringing in the East African regional tax bodies like the Kenya Revenue Authority, Tanzania Revenue Authority and the Rwanda Revenue Authority.

The dialogue, expected to be opened by Uganda’s Finance Minister Matia Kasaija, has also attracted tax experts, public finance experts and government representatives.

“Better tax administration will enhance economic growth, increase accountability of the state to its citizens, and more effectively mobilise domestic resources,” they say.

According to ATAF Executive Secretary Logan Wort, gaps and lack of synergies between tax policy, administration and customs in Africa create tax leakages, making it impossible for tax authorities to achieve their revenue collection targets.

For instance, available records indicate that in the financial year 2016/17 URA made a revenue shortfall of Shs457.51 billion, partly attributed to tax leakages, collecting 96.53 percent of the Shs13.18 trillion it had targeted to raise in tax collections. Kenya and Tanzania revenue collections could only reach 95.30 percent and 94.68 percent target, respectively, while Rwanda achieved 100.50 percent of taxes it had planned to collect.

The tax bodies say they face the challenge of non-compliance in cash economy due to structural, cultural, legislatives and administrative reasons with the call for technologic advancement to address some of them.

The ATAF event will also feature the first official launch of the second African Tax Outlook 2017.The update provides learning lessons from the past implementation to improving going forward.

The conference comes at the time when tax administrations in Africa are being urged to systematically broaden their tax base so as to fund a big percentage of national budgets as donors cut their aid to Africa.

 

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