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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Partner Publication

What Are We Taxing? Turnover, Profits and Policy in the Informal Economy

October 2026
Michael Rogan, Max Gallien, Nwabisa Malimba, Tamaryn Friderichs, Sandie Phakathi

Journal Article

The Politics of Passage: Studying Checkpoints and Claim Making in Conflict-affected Settings

May 2026
Peer Schouten, Vanessa van den Boogaard, Max Gallien, Shalaka Thakur, Florian Weigand

Book

Elgar Encyclopedia of African Politics Chapter 31: Formalisation

March 2026
Max Gallien, Vanessa van den Boogaard

Journal Article

Measurement and mirage: The informal sector revisited

March 2026
Max Gallien

Working Paper

Zakat as Non-State Social Welfare Provision: Distributional Dynamics and Gender Equity in Pakistan

January 2026
Max Gallien, Umair Javed, Vanessa van den Boogaard

Working Paper

Thinking Beyond Revenue: Estimating the Cost Effectiveness of Ghana’s Presumptive Tax Stamp

December 2025
Max Gallien, Alex Kombat
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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ICTD signs new partnerships for largest study of market taxation in Accra
15 April 2026

ICTD signs new partnerships for largest study of market taxation in Accra

ICTD signs three new MOUs with municipal authorities in Ghana for a project on the taxation of Accra’s markets….
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ICTD’s home institution IDS ranks first in the world for Development Studies for tenth year in a row
1 April 2026

ICTD’s home institution IDS ranks first in the world for Development Studies for tenth year in a row

The landmark achievement, announced in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2026, makes IDS and Sussex only the fifth…
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ICTD, WIEGO extend research partnership on informal sector taxation
23 July 2025

ICTD, WIEGO extend research partnership on informal sector taxation

The International Centre for Tax and Development (ICTD) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with global research and advocacy network…
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The Financing for Development Conference is over, what now? – Reflections from experts
8 July 2025

The Financing for Development Conference is over, what now? – Reflections from experts

The 4th International Financing for Development Conference concluded last week in Seville, with the focus now moving from the final…
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Pakistan’s bid to raise more revenue: a closer look at wealth taxes and DPI
30 June 2025

Pakistan’s bid to raise more revenue: a closer look at wealth taxes and DPI

With a projected deficit of 3.9% of GDP and multiple economic challenges, one equitable way to raise revenue in Pakistan…
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ICTD at the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development
26 June 2025

ICTD at the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development

Members of the ICTD team will be in Seville to speak at events, launch a new initiative, and participate in…
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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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23 October 2026

Max Gallien, Vanessa van den Boogaard pen letter to the editor at FT

Research Director Max Gallien and Senior Research Fellow Vanessa van den Boogaard, co-leads of ICTD’s Informality and Tax programme, wrote…

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Max Gallien, Vanessa van den Boogaard, and external author Umair Javed pen op-ed on support for wealth taxes in Pakistan
23 June 2025

Max Gallien, Vanessa van den Boogaard, and external author Umair Javed pen op-ed on support for wealth taxes in Pakistan

ICTD Research Fellows Max Gallien and Vanessa van den Boogaard, co-leads of the Centre’s Informality and Taxation programme, along with…
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Max Gallien, Vanessa van den Boogaard, and Umair Javed pen op-ed on Zakat work
29 April 2025

Max Gallien, Vanessa van den Boogaard, and Umair Javed pen op-ed on Zakat work

ICTD Research Fellows Max Gallien and Vanessa van den Boogaard along with Umair Javed, pen an op-ed on the Dawn…
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Max Gallien, Martin Hearson, and Mary Abounabhan reflect on Ghana's scrapped e-levy on The Conversation Africa
31 March 2025

Max Gallien, Martin Hearson, and Mary Abounabhan reflect on Ghana’s scrapped e-levy on The Conversation Africa

ICTD researchers Max Gallien, Martin Hearson, and Mary Abounabhan wrote a piece for The Conversation Africa on the lessons learned…

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ICTD study on zakat garners media attention as Ramadan concludes
31 March 2025

ICTD study on zakat garners media attention as Ramadan concludes

ICTD’s work on zakat, led by Informality and Tax co-leads Max Gallien and Vanessa van den Boogaard, along with Umair…

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VoxDev blog cites ICTD research
17 February 2025

VoxDev blog cites ICTD research

A blog on improving tax payments in Liberia by World Bank economist Oyebola Okunogbe on VoxDev references two ICTD-produced research….
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