Blog
91% of sub-Saharan African workers don’t save for old age: Why that’s a problem and how to fix it
by
Owen Nyang'oro
May 2023
Less than 10% of the workers in sub-Saharan Africa save for old age, the lowest rate for any region in the world. That implies most of the...
Blog
What determines tax revenues mobilization?
Tax revenues and political institutions placing constraints on the executive power may reinforce each other over time and this may also bring a shift...
Blog
From Monterrey to Addis Ababa, and what has happened since?
The importance of domestic revenue mobilization and taxation for sustainable development is widely acknowledged in global development discussions, but...
Blog
$1 trillion in the shade: The annual profits multinational corporations shift to tax havens continues to climb and climb
by
Ludvig Wier, Gabriel Zucman
March 2023
About a decade ago, the world’s biggest economies agreed to crack down on multinational corporations’ abusive use of tax havens. This resulted in a 15...
Blog
Empirical research is crucial for better tax enforcement in the developing world
I had the privilege to participate in the UNU-WIDER Winter School as one of the lecturers. In this blog, I explain my main takeaways for students and...
Blog
Global tax reforms, net-zero, and domestic revenue: Food for thought from the DRM programme
Domestic revenue mobilization (DRM) and taxation have gained prominence lately on the global agenda, most recently with the resolution for the United...
Blog
What can the GRD do for policymakers?
A few months ago, I was asked to deliver a lecture at the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies on the UNU-WIDER Government Revenue...
Blog
New country on the SOUTHMOD map: Meet our tax-benefit microsimulation team in Rwanda!
by
Anna Toppari
December 2022
How can Global South countries improve their tax and social protection systems? One way is to take advantage of tools that help assess the impact of...
Blog
New global estimates on profits in tax havens suggest the tax loss continues to rise
by
Ludvig Wier, Gabriel Zucman
December 2022
The world has been trying to curb profit shifting to tax havens for a decade, but consistent time series evaluating the impact of these reforms have...
Blog
Secure research data lab in Uganda: A game changer for efficient and fair taxation
by
Maria Jouste, Tina Kaidu Barugahara, Nicholas Musoke
January 2023
In May 2022, the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) and UNU-WIDER collaboratively launched a secure research data laboratory facility in Kampala, Uganda...
Blog
Ending aid dependency: Taxation in developing countries can be improved through collaboration
Finland aims to raise the amount of its development assistance to 0.7% of GDP, and this goal has good grounds. But how can we make sure that the...
Blog
The tortoise defeats the hare: Does moderate outlast rapid growth in domestic revenue?
by
Annalena Oppel, Kyle McNabb
February 2022
The past four decades have seen marked improvements in the collection of domestic revenue (tax and non-tax revenues) in many countries of the Global...
Blog
Social protection at a crossroad
by
Annalena Oppel
August 2021
How can we ensure a resilient and inclusive recovery from COVID-19? How can we hold on to the target of eradicating poverty and hunger by 2030, with...
Blog
Co-creation for fair and efficient taxation: Research recommendations to improve policies
by
Maria Jouste, Tina Kaidu Barugahara, Nicholas Musoke
August 2021
How can we determine the taxation of wage earners or multinational corporations in a fair manner? Will simplifying tax administration help increase...
Blog
Unlocking the mystery of domestic savings: What difference do they make?
The socioeconomic fallout from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the fore discussions on domestic resource mobilization (hereafter DRM)...
Blog
Reforming taxation in Kenya to reduce debt distress
by
Clement Otindo
February 2024
Improving tax systems is important for multiple reasons. For Kenya, finding ways to mobilize domestic revenue streams is critical to cutting the...
Blog
Cash Plus: Towards poverty reduction in Zambia
by
Miselo Bwalya
February 2024
The Zambian government wants to reduce poverty by 20% by 2030. To make this happen, the government reformed their national cash transfer programmes...
Blog
Are Sovereign Wealth Funds fit for purpose in Africa?
Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) have become a symbol of national success and a means for global, commercial and geopolitical influence. But how well do...
Blog
Modelling to influence poverty and inequality in Zanzibar: Latest addition to the SOUTHMOD programme
by
Anna Toppari
December 2023
ZANMOD, the tax-benefit microsimulation model for Zanzibar, was launched in November 2023. The model will aid local authorities and researchers in...
Blog
Oslo conference turns the spotlight on sustainable development financing
by
Denise Wall
September 2023
With the deadline for achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals just seven years away, there is an increasing sense of urgency over the...
Blog
From tax data to inclusive policies: How collaboration can help
by
Anna Toppari
September 2023
UNU-WIDER has worked for several years in collaboration with sub-Saharan African revenue authorities to facilitate the analysis of digital tax data...
Project workshop
Domestic savings mini workshop for country case authors
This project workshop brought together the authors responsible for the country case studies of The domestic savings shortfall in developing countries – what can be done about it? project. The country studies will be included in a book volume on...
Wed, 17 March 2021
Past event
Presentation
SOUTHMOD presented at the CeMPA General Meeting
CeMPA, Centre for Microsimulation and Policy Analysis, organized its yearly general meeting for experts working in the area of tax-benefit microsimulation on 12 May 2021. The meeting was held virtually. SOUTHMOD microsimulation models and ongoing...
Wed, 12 May 2021
Online,
United Kingdom
Past event
Project workshop
Project workshop: Fiscal states – the origins and development implications
Tue, 15 June 2021
–
Tue, 22 June 2021
Online,
Helsinki,
Finland
Past event
Presentation
Maria Jouste at the North East Universities Development Consortium
Maria Jouste, UNU-WIDER Research Associate, will present a research paper at the North East Universities Development Consortium on 6 November 2020. The virtual conference, hosted by Dartmouth College, will be held 6-7 November (EST). The topic of...
Fri, 6 November 2020
Past event
Presentation
Maria Jouste on Tax for Development
Maria Jouste, UNU-WIDER Research Associate, will give a presentation at the Tax for Development webinar series on 17 November 2020 (CET). The webinar series is hosted by Chr. Michelsen Institute. The topic of Jouste's presentation will be 'Do tax...
Tue, 17 November 2020
Past event
Project workshop
Extractive Industries: Taxation and Revenues
Thu, 5 November 2020
Zoom,
Finland
Past event
Blog
International tax research: Why does more than numbers matter
by
Maria Jouste, Tina Kaidu Barugahara, Dorothy Nakyambadde
August 2020
Can tax research be inspiring? Looking back at the three years of collaboration between UNU-WIDER and the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), the answer...
Blog
Lessons for tax policy from the WIDER Development Conference in Oslo
The annual WIDER Development Conference held this year in Oslo concentrated on domestic revenue mobilization (DRM). The 2.5-day hybrid event...
Seminar
Extractive industries: taxation and revenues II
Wed, 26 May 2021
Online,
Helsinki,
Finland
Past event