African Tax Administration Forum

{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}} {{Infobox organization | name = African Tax Administration Forum | bgcolor =  | fgcolor =  | image = | image_border = | image_size =  | image_alt = logo with African continent and name of organisation to the right | caption = Logo of the African Tax Administration Forum | abbreviation = ATAF | goal = | formation = {{Start date|2008|08}} | type = IGO | status =  | purpose =  | headquarters = Pretoria, South Africa | location = | coordinates =  | region_served = Africa | membership = | language =  | leader_title = Executive Secretary | leader_name = Logan Wort | main_organ = Secretariat | parent_organization =  | affiliations =  | num_staff = 26 | num_volunteers = | budget = | website = {{url|ataftax.org}} | remarks = }}

thumb|right|200px|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.<ref>{{cite book|title=African Economic Outlook 2010|year=2010|publisher=OECD Publishing|isbn=978-92-64-08652-4 |author=African Development Bank |author2=Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development: Development Centre}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Aid under pressure: support for development assistance in a global economic downturn|year=2009|publisher=The Stationery Office|isbn=978-0-215-53051-6|page=143 |author=((International Development Committee, House of Commons, UK Parliament))}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2015 |title=Donors |publisher=ATAF |url=http://www.ataftax.org/en/InternationalCo-Operation/Pages/Donors.aspx |access-date=3 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304110413/http://www.ataftax.org/en/InternationalCo-Operation/Pages/Donors.aspx |archive-date=4 March 2016 }}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2015 |title=Development Partners |publisher=ATAF |url=http://www.ataftax.org/en/InternationalCo-Operation/Pages/Development-Partners.aspx |access-date=3 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151013031844/http://www.ataftax.org/en/InternationalCo-Operation/Pages/Development-Partners.aspx |archive-date=13 October 2015 }}</ref>

== Member nations == As of October 2015, there are 37 member nations:<ref>{{cite web|title=ATAF Member Countries|url=http://crm.ataftax.org/member_countries_pub.php|publisher=African Tax Administration Forum|access-date=27 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151013031954/http://crm.ataftax.org/member_countries_pub.php|archive-date=13 October 2015}}</ref>

*{{flag|Angola}} *{{flag|Benin}} *{{flag|Botswana}} *{{flag|Burkina Faso}} *{{flag|Burundi}} *{{flag|Cameroon}} *{{flag|Chad}} *{{flag|Comoros}} *{{flag|Côte d'Ivoire}} *{{flag|Egypt}} *{{flag|Eritrea}} *{{flag|Gabon}} *{{flag|Ghana}} *{{flag|Kenya}} *{{flag|Lesotho}} *{{flag|Liberia}} *{{flag|Madagascar}} *{{flag|Malawi}} *{{flag|Mauritania}} *{{flag|Mauritius}} *{{flag|Mozambique}} *{{flag|Namibia}} *{{flag|Niger}} *{{flag|Nigeria}} *{{flag|Rwanda}} *{{flag|Senegal}} *{{flag|Seychelles}} *{{flag|Sierra Leone}} *{{flag|South Africa}} *{{flag|Sudan}} *{{flag|Swaziland}} *{{flag|Tanzania}} *{{flag|The Gambia}} *{{flag|Uganda}} *{{flag|Zambia}} *{{flag|Zimbabwe}} {{div col end}}

==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.<ref>{{Cite web|year= 2015|title= Tax and Development Short Course|publisher= Institute of Development Studies|url= http://www.ids.ac.uk/events/tax-and-development-short-course-2015|access-date= 3 November 2015|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160522053112/http://www.ids.ac.uk/events/tax-and-development-short-course-2015|archive-date= 22 May 2016}}</ref> In 2015, ATAF launched the African Tax Research Network (ATRN), which will hold an annual congress for researchers to share their work.<ref>{{Cite web|year=2015 |title= African Tax Research Network Set Up|publisher= The Chronicle |url=http://www.chronicle.co.zw/african-tax-research-network-set-up/}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite news|year=2015 |title= New rules, same old paradigm|newspaper= The Economist|url=https://www.economist.com/news/business/21672207-plan-curb-multinationals-tax-avoidance-opportunity-missed-new-rules-same-old}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite web|year= 2015|title= Exchange of Information|publisher= ATAF|url= http://www.ataftax.org/en/TaxPrograms/Pages/EOI.aspx}}{{Dead link|date=September 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

==Conferences==

In October 2015, ATAF held its second international conference on tax in Africa, with the theme "Tax Compliance and Limiting Illicit financial flows".<ref>{{Cite web |year=2015 |title=Illicit Financial Flows Grab Limelight at 2nd International Conference on Tax in Africa |publisher=GNN Liberia |url=http://www.ataftax.org/en/TaxPrograms/Pages/EOI.aspx }}{{Dead link|date=September 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

== References == {{Reflist}}

== External links == *{{Official website|http://www.ataftax.org}}

Category:Economy of Africa Category:International organizations based in Africa Category:International taxation Category:Tax organizations Category:Tax administration