07/12/2019 The Network of Tax Organisations expressed its support to the ATI and discussed possible priorities post-2020 On 4 July 2019, Marcio F. Verdi, Head of Council of the Network of Tax Organisations (NTO) and Executive Secretary of the Inter-American Center of Tax Administrations (CIAT), represented the Network of Tax Organisations in the closing panel of the ATI/ITC Tax and Development Conference 2019 in Berlin. As the commitments to (i) collectively double support to domestic revenue mobilisation, (ii) step up the mobilisation of domestic revenues in partners countries, and (iii) promote and ensure policy coherence for development, set in the context of the Addis Tax Initiative, are meant to be achieved by 2020, the panel explored what could be the new objectives for an agreed period beyond 2020 and the way to get there. Together with Gabriela Hoven, Director General at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Essa Jallow, Deputy Commissioner The Gambia Revenue Authority, Samrita Sidhu, Deputy Director of the Public Finance and Tax (PFT) department at the Department for International Development (DFID), and Marijn Verhoeven, Head of the Global Tax Team and Lead Economist at the World Bank Group, Mr. Verdi discussed possible priorities for the Addis Tax Initiative post-2020. During his interventions, Mr. Verdi emphasised NTO members’ commitment to supporting the collective action of the ATI member countries and supporting organisations to continue the Addis Tax Initiative. He encouraged a stronger focus on the objectives of aid effectiveness and donor coordination, while better taking into consideration the absorption capacities of partner countries, which should notably help avoid duplication and fragmentation in DRM support. In addition, the Network of Tax Organisations was represented at the conference by: Mr. Logan Wort, Executive Secretary of the African Tax Administration Forum (ATAF), and Raphael Kamoto, Director Strategic Partnerships, Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation at ATAF; Dr. Mohamed Osman Ibrahim Abdalla, Secretary General, Association of Tax Authorities of Islamic Countries (ATAIC); Mr. Alejandro Juarez, Director of Training and Human Capacity Development at CIAT; Mr. Jean-Marc Niel, Secretary General of the Tax Administrators Circle for Reflection and Exchange (CREDAF), and Mr. Ismaila Diallo, Deputy Secretary General of CREDAF; and Ms. Koni Ravono, Head of the Pacific Islands Tax Administrators’ Association (PITAA) Secretariat. In preparation of the ATI/ITC Tax and Development Conference 2019, the Network of Tax Organisations put together a position paper on the role of regional tax organisations in the Addis Tax Initiative post-2020. The position paper can be found here.

CIAT presented its Ethics Toolkit at the ATI/ITC Tax and Development Conference 2019 in Berlin, Germany. The ATI/ITC Tax & Development Conference 2019 offered a chance to exchange on how improving ethics in tax administrations can contribute to Domestic Revenue Mobilisation. After Gayline Vuluku (Assistant Manager, Strategy Innovation and Risk Management, Kenya Revenue Authority) brightly reported on the Kenyan experience, Alejandro Juárez Espindola (Director, Direction on Training and Human Development, CIAT) presented the CIAT Ethics Toolkit, comprising trainings and self-assessment tools for tax administrations officials to improve integrity within government. At the 2019 General Assembly in Cuba, members of Centro Interamericano de Administraciones Tributarias (CIAT) suggested to transform its long-standing committee in an NTO Ethics Committee, thereby opening the platform to tax administrations worldwide. Watch that space and find out more here about CIAT Ethics Toolkit: https://lnkd.in/dwNTNUd.

The first NTO Technical Conference has been announced to take place in October 2020 It’s official: Stefano Gesuelli (Guardia di Finanza) just announced the organisation of the first NTO Technical Conference to take place in Rome in October 2020, during the closing ceremony of the Centro Interamericano de Administraciones Tributarias – CIAT. The Technical Conference of the Network of Tax Organisations will focus on the issue of *Tax & Crime*. It will represent the first event commonly organised by 9 regional and international organisations of tax organisations, representing all together over a hundred countries

Several members of the Network of Tax Organisations participated in the 2019 CIAT Technical Conference, hosted by the Moroccan Revenue Authority on 8-10 October 2019 in Marrakech. On 8-10 October 2019, several members of the Network of Tax Organisations participated in the Technical Conference of the Inter-American Center of Tax Administrations (CIAT), hosted by the Moroccan Revenue Authority, in Marrakech. CIAT Technical Conference focused on the theme of “Tax Administration and Development” and served as an important opportunity for tax administrators to exchange views on issues such as the fight against informality, taxation of the digital economy, tax certainty, and mechanisms to improve compliance. CIAT Executive Secretary and NTO Head of Council Marcio Ferreira Verdi opened the conference with a quote from Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. stating that “taxes are what we pay for a civilized society”. He highlighted the key role that tax administrations play in development, and the importance of taking this role seriously. Frantisek Imrecze, Executive Secretary of Intra-European Organisation of Tax Administrations, introduced the second panel on control and taxation of the digital economy. Reiterating facts from the World Economic Forum, he stated that the total workload performed by machines is expected to increase from 29% in 2018 to 52% by 2022. This raises the question of whether tax administrations are ready to deal with the tax implications of such rapid digitalisation, especially given the current reliance of many revenue collection systems on labour taxes. Following this, an all-African panel on the role of tax administrations in mobilising domestic revenue featured two members of regional tax organisations, Duncan Onduru (CATA) and Babatunde Oladapo (WATAF). The panel discussed the challenges and opportunities for revenue administrations in expanding their responsibilities beyond pure tax collection towards wider tax administration functions. Some of the key recommendations included: allowing governments of developing countries to set their own tax policy priorities, stepping up efforts to widen the tax base, increasing research capabilities to improve policy formulation, as well as organising cross-government tax dialogues to secure political ownership and align short and long-term objectives.  

On 7 October 2019, the Network of Tax Organisations held its third Executive Council meeting in 2019, ahead of CIAT Technical Conference in Marrakech. The meeting was attended by representatives of ATAF, CATA, CIAT, CREDAF, IOTA, WATAF, and the ITC. Representatives of the Guardia di Finanza and the Knowledge Sharing Platform (KSP) also took part to update NTO Members on NTO-related developments. After defining priorities in pursuing NTO’s institutionalisation, NTO Members agreed on the next steps towards the NTO Technical Conference, scheduled to take place in October 2020 in Rome. NTO Members also discussed the modalities of new NTO products such as a training workshop on tax and crime, a practical guide to regional tax organisations, and establishing a NTO ethics committee. Finally, members explored how the NTO could most effectively use the Knowledge Sharing Platform (KSP) to promote its activities.