Revenue Reform and Statebuilding in Anglophone Africa

Abstract

Although increasingly justified in terms of statebuilding, recent tax reforms in anglophone Africa contributed only modestly to that goal. They have produced impressive tax agencies, but no detectable increases in revenue collections. They have not addressed some major deficiencies in tax policy and administration. The reforms have however helped improve the career prospects for senior African tax administrators and generated more movements of senior staff between tax agencies, the private sector, and international advisory work. These personnel changes have ambiguous implications for the development of revenue capacity in the long term.