PRESS RELEASE:
Geneva, Switzerland, 30 November, 2023— On the sidelines of the Conference on South-South Cooperation in International Tax Matters, co-organised by the South Centre and the Global Alliance for Tax Justice, the West African Tax Administration Forum (WATAF) and the South Centre have solidified their collaboration by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on November 27, 2023.
The WATAF and the South Centre have a history of collaboration, regularly organising joint events to address pressing issues in the field of international taxation. The most recent collaboration was the Special Technical Session on the OECD Two Pillar Solution, held in July 2023.
Expressing enthusiasm about the strengthened partnership, the Executive Secretary of WATAF, Mr. Babatunde Oladapo, stated, “WATAF has an ongoing partnership with the South Centre, which has helped to deliver capacity building to our membership and create awareness on current global tax-related matters. The MOU will help us explore new frontiers in our collaboration.”
Dr. Yuefen Li, Senior Advisor South-South Cooperation and Development Finance at the South Centre, represented Mr. Carlos Correa, the Executive Director of the South Centre, at the signing ceremony. Dr. Li emphasised the effectiveness of the two institutions in advocating for the global South on taxation issues over the past few years, stating, “With the signing of the MOU at a critical moment, we will work more closely in the future and have more impactful and successful joint activities.”
To further buttress the need to formalise the partnership between the two institutions through an MOU, the conference witnessed the presentation of preliminary findings of a forthcoming joint study by the South Centre, the African Tax Administration Forum, and the West African Tax Administration Forum. The study focuses on country-level revenue estimates from Amount A and Digital Services Taxes for the Member States of the South Centre, West African Tax Administration Forum, African Tax Administration Forum and the African Union.
The collaboration between WATAF and the South Centre aims to contribute to the advancement of global tax policies that address the specific needs and challenges faced by developing nations, with a particular emphasis on the common Member States of WATAF and the South Centre, which are Benin, Cabo Verde, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone. Through joint initiatives and knowledge-sharing, the two organisations are committed to fostering meaningful change in the landscape of international taxation for developing countries.
For further information, please contact:
Abdul Muheet Chowdhary
South Centre
Tochukwu Sandra Onyemata
tochukwu.onyemata@wataf-tax.org
WATAF Secretariat
About South Centre
The South Centre is an intergovernmental think tank of developing countries with currently 55 developing country member States from Africa, Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean, based in Geneva, Switzerland. It seeks to promote the common interests of developing countries while recognising and reflecting their diversity.
About West African Tax Administration Forum (WATAF)
WATAF was established through an adoption of agreement by the General Assembly of member states to contribute to the efficacy of tax administration and improved public service delivery in support of the development of countries in West Africa. Its inaugural meeting was held in Abuja, Nigeria, on 12 September, 2011.
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