Max Gallien

Max Gallien

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This profile is also available in French

Biography

Dr Max Gallien is Research Director of ICTD. His research specialises in the politics of informal and illegal economies, the political economy of the Middle East and North Africa and development politics. He completed his PhD at the London School of Economics. Max co-leads the informality and taxation programme with Vanessa, as well as the ICTD’s capacity building programme.

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Policy Brief

Why Mass Tax Registration Campaigns Do Not Work

July 2023
Max Gallien, Giulia Mascagni, Mick Moore, Giovanni Occhiali, Wilson Prichard, Fabrizio Santoro, Celeste Scarpini, Vanessa van den Boogaard

Working Paper

Between God, the People, and the State: Citizen Conceptions of Zakat

June 2023
Max Gallien, Umair Javed, Vanessa van den Boogaard

Journal Article

An overlooked market: loose cigarettes, informal vendors and their implications for tobacco taxation

May 2023
Max Gallien, Giovanni Occhiali, Hana Ross

Policy Brief

Cannabis Taxation as a Revenue Source for Development: Opportunities and Challenges

April 2023
Max Gallien, Giovanni Occhiali

Journal Article

Formalization and its Discontents: Conceptual Fallacies and Ways Forward

April 2023
Max Gallien, Vanessa van den Boogaard

Working Paper

Zakat, Non-State Welfare Provision and Redistribution in Times of Crisis: Evidence from the Covid-19 Pandemic

April 2023
Max Gallien, Umair Javed, Vanessa van den Boogaard
Pakistan’s support for wealth taxes
24 June 2025

Pakistan’s support for wealth taxes

In a context marked by deepening fiscal constraint, wealth taxes offer a potential solution for Pakistan as they have done…
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Ghana’s e-levy: 3 lessons from the abolished mobile money tax
1 April 2025

Ghana’s e-levy: 3 lessons from the abolished mobile money tax

The e-levy’s intense politicisation and complex design made it an interesting case of a wider trend of mobile money taxes…
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Pakistanis are paying over 1.7 billion GBP in zakat every year—mostly to women
26 March 2025

Pakistanis are paying over 1.7 billion GBP in zakat every year—mostly to women

Every year, hundreds of millions of Muslims across the world pay a proportion – broadly 2,5% – of their wealth…

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Reasons to be Optimistic about Tax and the Informal Sector
12 March 2025

Reasons to be Optimistic about Tax and the Informal Sector

There are many reasons to be anxious about the taxation of informal sectors in lower income countries. Classic policy interventions…

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Effective and Equitable Formalisation within the Financing for Development Agenda
29 January 2025

Effective and Equitable Formalisation within the Financing for Development Agenda

Max Gallien argues for key changes to the draft text of the Financing for Development outcome document, given that dominant…
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Three myths on smuggling and taxes
12 June 2024

Three myths on smuggling and taxes

Few topics attract as many myths and misconceptions as smuggling. As an activity that is more frequently encountered through tabloids…

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Group photo of the 2026 cohort of the ICTD tax course
28 September 2026

Congratulations to the 2026 cohort of ICTD’s tax research course for completing in-person module

Last week, 19 of the participants in ICTD’s Research on Tax and Development course successfully completed the final in-person module…

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ICTD partners with ATI to advance evidence-based approaches to tax and informality
3 September 2026

ICTD partners with ATI to advance evidence-based approaches to tax and informality

The International Centre for Tax and Development (ICTD) and the Addis Tax Initiative (ATI) have joined forces to advance evidence-based…
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ICTD suspends flagship course on Research on Tax and Development
17 August 2026

ICTD suspends flagship course on Research on Tax and Development

ICTD will not be running its flagship Research on Tax and Development course, due to start in autumn 2026. The…
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ICTD secures $1m from Founders Pledge to support collaborative research to strengthen tax administration
6 August 2026

ICTD secures $1m from Founders Pledge to support collaborative research to strengthen tax administration

The International Centre for Tax and Development has secured US$1 million from Founders Pledge to fund a new three-year programme…
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From Afghanistan to Venezuela, new research shows how roadblocks shape governance and everyday life in conflict contexts
20 July 2026

From Afghanistan to Venezuela, new research shows how roadblocks shape governance and everyday life in conflict contexts

A new special issue in the leading development studies journal Development and Change puts roadblock politics squarely on the academic…
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ICTD convenes stakeholder workshop on informal taxation in The Gambia
28 April 2026

ICTD convenes stakeholder workshop on informal taxation in The Gambia

Earlier this month, ICTD convened a stakeholder workshop in collaboration with The Gambia’s Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs to…
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Session: Taxation and the informal economy: lessons and best practices

Session: Taxation and the informal economy: lessons and best practices

In person

23 July 2025 – 09:15

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Timezone: Africa/Addis_Ababa

ICTD is organising at the 2025 ATI General Assembly a technical session on taxation and the informal economy.
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Workshop: Tax and Informal Economies in Africa: Charting Ways Forward

Workshop: Tax and Informal Economies in Africa: Charting Ways Forward

In person

18 February 2025 – 09:00

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Timezone: Europe/London

Akosombo, Ghana
ICTD is hosting a focused workshop in Akosombo, Ghana from 18th to 21st February 2024 that seeks to chart new ways forward in how revenue authorities engage with informal economies.
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Panel: Beyond the money: How tax policies are shaping politics and society in Africa

Panel: Beyond the money: How tax policies are shaping politics and society in Africa

Virtual

12 September 2024 – 15:00

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Timezone: Europe/London

This interactive panel will discuss the relationship between taxes and trust in the state, elections and public mobilisation, informality, and gendered social relations.
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Max Gallien discusses smuggling in North Africa on CSIS podcast
3 January 2025

Max Gallien discusses smuggling in North Africa on CSIS podcast

ICTD Research Fellow Max Gallien talked in-depth about his work researching smuggling in North Africa during an episode of the…
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Sierra Leone media outlet mentions ICTD Fellow Max Gallien
1 November 2024

Sierra Leone media outlet mentions ICTD Fellow Max Gallien

Gallien was quoted saying: “We’re excited about the potential to expand our current research partnership.” Read the full article here….
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ICTD authored article receives lots of coverage
27 March 2023

ICTD authored article receives lots of coverage

An article about the Ghana E-Levy, co-authored by two ICTD researchers Max Gallien and Vanessa van den Boogaard, was published…

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Max Gallien, Giovanni Occhiali published in the New Left Review
22 March 2023

Max Gallien, Giovanni Occhiali published in the New Left Review

ICTD Researchers Max Gallien and Giovanni Occhiali were published in the New Left Review for their article High Income, about…

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Max Gallien and Vanessa van den Boogaard OpEd published in the Middle East Eye
14 November 2022

Max Gallien and Vanessa van den Boogaard OpEd published in the Middle East Eye

Research Fellows Max Gallien and Vanessa van den Boogaard were published in the London-based Middle East Eye writing about the…

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Max Gallien authors piece for Middle East Eye
14 September 2022

Max Gallien authors piece for Middle East Eye

ICTD Researcher Max Gallien has written a piece on Tunisian President Kais Saied in London-based publication Middle East Eye. You…

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