Research Theme

Tax and Governance

Discovering how and why increased taxation can spur statebuilding and government accountability is crucial across all countries. Combining tax and governance gives us a richer picture of how the right kinds of taxation can deliver more and better for taxpayers, and what success is contingent on. When tax and governance operate well, both local and national governments benefit.

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Key Resources

Report

Taxing Smarter: Advancing Reform Through Research and Partnership

July 2026

Policy Brief

Governing the Exchange of Tax Data in Digital Public Infrastructure: Law, Rights, and the Protection of Citizens in Data-Driven Systems

July 2026

Daisy Ogembo, Hannelore Niesten

Journal Article

Citizens’ aid preferences amid state collapse: Experimental evidence from Haiti

April 2026

Ana Isabel López García, Sarah Berens

Partner Publication

Digital Payments: Opportunities and Challenges for African Tax Administrations

October 2025

Fabrizio Santoro, Lucia Rossel

Tax and Governance Library

Working Paper

Tax and the Governance Dividend

September 2015

Mick Moore

Working Paper

Electoral Competitiveness, Political Budget Cycles and Taxation in Developing Countries

September 2015

Wilson Prichard

Working Paper

Taxation, Non-Tax Revenue and Democracy: New Evidence Using New Cross-Country Data

September 2015

Wilson Prichard, Paola Salardi, Paul Segal

Working Paper

Revenue Reform and Statebuilding in Anglophone Africa

September 2015

Mick Moore

Working Paper

The Political Economy of Tax Reform in Bangladesh: Political Settlements, Informal Institutions and the Negotiation of Reform

September 2015

Mirza Hassan, Wilson Prichard

Working Paper

Donors, Aid and Taxation in Developing Countries: An Overview

September 2015

Wilson Prichard, Jean-François Brun, Oliver Morrissey

Working Paper

Caught in a Trap: Zambia’s Mineral Tax Reforms

September 2015

David Manley

Book

Essay: When the Terrain does not fit the Map: Local government Taxation in Africa

June 2015

Odd-Helge Fjeldstad

Journal Article

Revenue Reform and Statebuilding in Anglophone Africa

April 2014

Mick Moore

Partner Publication

Local government taxation in Sub-Saharan Africa – A review and an agenda for research

March 2014

Odd-Helge Fjeldstad, Gérard Chambas, Jean-François Brun

Partner Publication

Environmental Taxation and Development: A Scoping Study

September 2013

Stephen Spratt

Partner Publication

Revenue Reform and Statebuilding in Anglophone Africa

July 2013

Mick Moore

18 May 2026

The future of development starts with getting tax right

Giulia Mascagni

Taxation is a central part of a new era of development that has fiscal resilience, system change and people at…

28 April 2026

The IRD is finding its mojo

Mick Moore

The government recently promised to build the department a new HQ. Not entirely coincidentally, the IRD itself has recently begun…

24 June 2025

Pakistan’s support for wealth taxes

Max Gallien, Umair Javed, Vanessa van den Boogaard

In a context marked by deepening fiscal constraint, wealth taxes offer a potential solution for Pakistan as they have done…

30 May 2025

Bridging the divide: Rwanda’s quest for equitable digital governance

Elizabeth Bermeo, Fabrizio Santoro

In Rwanda, digital transformation is driven by IremboGov, an integrated e-government platform that streamlines access to essential services. While this…

28 April 2025

Why tax matters in fragile states and how donors can support it

Vanessa van den Boogaard

Fragile contexts are home to 24% of the world’s population (1.9 billion people), and three-quarters (73%) of the world’s extreme…

23 July 2024

Taxing mobile money: Five critical strategies for policymakers

Awa Diouf, Hannelore Niesten, Mary Abounabhan

Revenue authorities, policymakers, industry, and researchers met to explore how taxes on mobile money could be effectively and equitably designed….

26 May 2022

ICTD’s ‘The Routledge Handbook of Smuggling’ book editor featured on ‘Between the Lines’ podcast

ICTD Research Fellow Max Gallien was interviewed by BBC journalist Sana Safi about his new book ‘The Routledge Handbook of…

25 May 2022

The tax story behind the Sri Lankan crisis

Professor Mick Moore explains the causes of the economic crisis in Sri Lanka and its impact on people’s day-to-day lives….

6 April 2022

Announcing the Local Government Revenue Initiative (LoGRI)

In 2017, the ICTD launched the Africa Property Tax Initiative (APTI) to support efforts to strengthen property taxation across Africa….

6 April 2022

Job Opportunity: Programme Manager, DIGITAX

Closing date for applications: Saturday, 30th April 2022 The International Centre for Tax and Development is seeking a Programme Manager…

31 March 2022

DIGITAX working papers examine the intersection between technology, tax policies & collection methods

DIGITAX is a new ICTD research programme aimed at generating knowledge and evidence to support governments in overcoming the challenges…

28 February 2022

New World Bank framework for tax reform developed in partnership with the ICTD

In many developing countries, tax revenues remain far below levels needed to provide citizens with basic services or fund extra…

Webinar: Getting Targets Right – How much tax can low-income countries raise?

Virtual

17 April 2024 – 14:00

•

Timezone: UTC

A panel of researchers and practitioners are set to discuss the role that targets can play in building tax capacity. Are optimistic targets helpful or hurtful? And how can we make targets better?

Virtual Workshops: Policy Design for Effective Property Taxation

Virtual

19 July 2023 – 15:00

•

Timezone: Europe/Paris

While property taxation constitutes a major revenue source for subnational governments, it remains one of the most underperforming in lower-income countries. This is but one example of how, in many countries, subnational governments’ revenue-raising efforts are frequently ineffective, inequitable, and

Conference: Building Progressive & Equitable Property Tax Systems in Lower-Income Countries

In person

13 June 2023 – 09:00

•

Timezone: Africa/Nairobi

Nairobi Serena Hotel, Nairobi, Kenya

The Local Government Revenue Initiative (LoGRI) is hosting its Inaugural conference from June 13-15 in Nairobi. The conference aims to unite government administrators, policymakers, and applied researchers to explore strategies for building stronger property tax systems.

Conference: Global Tax Governance at a Crossroads

In person

5 June 2023 – 09:00

•

Timezone: Africa/Dar_es_Salaam

Nairobi Serena Hotel, Nairobi, Kenya

The ICTD is hosting a research and policy conference in Nairobi on the future of global tax governance in partnership with the Kenya School of Revenue Administration, and in collaboration with the the Committee on Fiscal Studies at the University

Current

Traditional Leaders, Taxation, and Statebuilding in Sierra Leone

Start date: 01/04/2024

Completed

Mobile money and quality of tax administration and tax policy in developing countries

Start date: 16/08/2023

Completed

Tax compliance and Digital Financial Services in Burkina Faso: The role of formal and informal

Start date: 01/08/2023

Completed

The impact of mobile money taxation on SACCOS and their members in Tanzania

Start date: 02/08/2023

Completed

The impact of taxation on mobile money agents: a case study on Cameroon

Start date: 09/08/2023

Completed

New taxpayer registration through ID – impacts on formalisation and revenue

Start date: 20/10/2025

Completed

E-Levy and merchant payment exemptions in Ghana

Start date: 09/08/2023

Completed

Perceptions, Impact, and Equity of Mobile Money taxation: The case of Ghana’s E-levy

Start date: 03/05/2023

Current

Taxation of High Net Worth Individuals in Sierra Leone

Start date: 14/06/2021

Completed

Does the Expansion of Tax Demands Lead to Greater Political Engagement and Demands for Accountability? Evidence from a Property Tax Reform in Sierra Leone

Start date: 20/10/2022

Completed

Can Traditional Political Institutions Help the State Raise Taxes? Experimental Evidence from Sierra Leone

Start date: 01/09/2022

Completed

The Collateral Effects of Evictions on Property Tax Morale: Class, Preferences and Signals from the State

Start date: 03/11/2021