International Centre for Tax and Development (ICTD)

Five recommended reads on gender and tax for International Women’s Day 2026 - ICTD For International Women's Day, we’ve selected five essential ICTD reads that explore the intersection between gender and tax.

At ICTD, gender has always been a central pillar of our work. And this work is becoming much more urgent.

For #IWD2026, We’ve selected 5 essential reads that explore the intersection between gender and tax ➡️ https://ow.ly/l1s650YqrAz

#InternationalWomensDay #TaxResearch #TaxExperts #TaxReads

🚺This International Women's Day, we celebrate the insipiring women in our network!

When people talk to colleagues who work on gender and tax, their reactions vary from confusion to curiosity.

Jalia Kangave reflects on the realities of her work through poetry ➡️ https://ow.ly/75UM50YpAY5

#IWD2026

From Venezuela to Portugal: how an ICTD alum is bridging research and tax reform across continents - ICTD We spoke with Rosa Maria Rodrigues De Abreu, 2022/23 alumna of the ICTD Research on Tax and Development course.

🚺This International Women's Day, we celebrate our students!

After 25 years in Venezuela’s tax administration, Rosa Rodrigues de Abreu was not afraid to challenge the unknown. In 2019, she moved to Spain and in 2022 she joined our course.

🔗Read her story: https://ow.ly/IeQT50Ypxon

#IWD2026

Zakat as Non-State Social Welfare Provision: Distributional Dynamics and Gender Equity in Pakistan - ICTD We examine the distributional dynamics of zakat in Pakistan to help understand non-state welfare provision in a Muslim-majority country.

🌙As Ramadan begins, attention turns to zakat — one of the five pillars of Islam. As many Muslims choose to pay zakat during Ramadan, this month represents a key period for wealth redistribution.

But how much is actually paid? And to whom?
Find out➡️ https://ow.ly/C9rk50YhJMN

Max Gallien Umair Javed

Roadblock taxation: the dangers of extra-legal payments in Ethiopia - ICTD In recent years, Ethiopia has witnessed a significant rise in one particularly harmful extra-legal practice: roadblock taxation.

Informal revenue generation methods can have a developmental role but practices like roadbloack tax serve private rather than public interests.

What does the spread of these taxes say about state authority in Ethiopia? ➡️ https://www.ictd.ac/blog/roadblock-taxation-extra-legal-payments-ethiopia/

UNU-WIDER, Zambia Revenue Authority and International Centre for Tax and Development invite proposals using administrative tax data, using our new secure data lab in Zambia. Topics include tax administration, corporate taxation, tax policy and economy. Deadline: 28 Feb 2026.

👉 go.unu.edu/gEAlY

Call for consultant for Morocco case study on tax and data governance - ICTD ICTD is seeking a consultant to produce a Morocco case study as part of a research project on tax administration and data governance.

#CallForApplications: ICTD is seeking a consultant to produce a Morocco case study as part of a research project on tax administration and data governance.

📝Details: https://www.ictd.ac/news/call-for-consultant-for-morocco-case-study-on-tax-and-data-governance/

#Career #ResearchJobs

Three people stand in front of a backdrop featuring GRA and blue winged logos at an official event.

Our researchers Max Gallien and Vanessa van den Boogaard recently joined senior leaders of the Ghana Revenue Authority to present insights from our latest work 👇

Explore ICTD's recent research on Ghana here ➡️ https://ow.ly/Hs5g50YcbNy

#TaxExperts #TaxPolicy #TaxResearch #Tax4Dev

Art card of the event bearing the text: "Tax Dispute Resolution Under the UN Convention on Tax: Lessons from investment arbitration".

🏛️ With #UNTaxConvention negotiations underway, how should tax dispute settlement under Protocol 2 take shape? Tomorrow, our researcher Frederik Heitmüller will share his insights in this panel hosted by International Institute for Sustainable Development.

More info➡️ https://ow.ly/XFrj50Y8T1N

Outdoor mobile money service stalls with colorful umbrellas and customers in a busy market setting.

Newly published ICTD study on Tanzania's #MobileMoney levy: businesses adapted by bundling payments, but most don't understand the tax. Those who do view it negatively.

Read the article, published in the Development Policy Review, here ➡️ https://ow.ly/FEk850Y89sl

📸 Fiona Graham / WorldRemit

Tall glass skyscraper behind a row of international flags fluttering under a partly cloudy blue sky.

ICTD's @martinhearson.bsky.social and Frederik Heitmüller will be speaking at an academic symposium on the #UNTaxConvention, hosted by NYU's International Tax Program.

👉 Check here for details: https://ow.ly/Zuaf50Y84kU

#UNTaxConvention #TaxExperts #InternationalTax #GlobalTax

Night city skyline with glowing international currency symbols orbiting a digital globe above skyscrapers.

#UNTaxConvention talks resume next week, and Protocol 1 on cross-border services is back on the agenda.

Our brief maps the pathways and trade-offs negotiators face. It finds that success depends on aligning frameworks with political realities and varied capacities.

See: https://ow.ly/eHWv50Y5kGA

What Senegal’s VAT reforms reveal about taxing cross-border services - ICTD Across Africa and beyond, governments are extending VAT to cross-border supplies of services, with Senegal a recent adopter.

As the #GlobalForumOnVAT discusses digital sourcing & cross-border taxation, Senegal’s VAT reform provides valuable insights: legal alignment with international norms is one thing, implementation another.

🔗Full analysis: https://www.ictd.ac/blog/senegal-vat-reforms-taxing-cross-border-services/

Wide view of the United Nations General Assembly hall with rows of empty yellow seats and a large emblem on the golden wall behind the podium.

Prepare for the 4th #UNTaxConvention session next week, with our reading lists:

🏛️On the framework and process: https://ow.ly/bMfw50Y1JrS

🌍 On protocol 1 (cross-border services): https://ow.ly/b3SC50Y1JrU

⚖️ On protocol 2 (dispute prevention & resolution): https://ow.ly/IhwK50Y1JrV

#GlobalTax

A collage of the pictures of five students from the ICTD course with a superimposed text that reads: Why tax professionals choose the ICTD course?

For over a decade, our Research on Tax and Development course has supported students in building skills they now apply across policy, practice, and academia.

On #InternationalDayOfEducation, we celebrate our alumni and their impact ⬇️ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LdBNUnccMg

High Net Worth Individuals calling to be taxed more at World Economic Forum, but how does this work in practice? - ICTD Last week, over 250 billionaires and millionaires called on global leaders at the 54th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum to impose higher taxes on the extremely wealthy. Here's what ICTD researchers have to say on the proposal.

🌍 As the #WorldEconomicForum wraps up in Davos, an increasing number of the world’s wealthiest are calling to be taxed more.

Read our analysis on the topic here: https://www.ictd.ac/news/high-net-worth-individuals-taxed-more-world-economic-forum/

#TaxJustice #TaxTheRich #TaxResearch

Taxing smarter is the key to thriving in an era of declining aid - ICTD With 2025, the development sector changed for good. Today scaling up tax mobilization is a essential to succeed in the post-aid era.

Many will remember 2025 as a pivotal year for the development sector.

In a new Devex op-ed, Giulia Mascagni explains how it is not all doom and gloom as the focus to getting the next era of development right should be: taxation

➡️ https://www.ictd.ac/blog/taxing-smarter-key-thriving-declining-aid/

Cover of the UNU-WIDER paper entitled 'The panopticon taxman: The impact of e-invoicing on VAT compliance in Uganda'

How is e-invoicing affecting VAT compliance in #Uganda?

New research, published by
UNU-WIDER
and co-authored by ICTD's Adrienne Lees, shows reporting shifts among firms more tightly enforced under the new mandate 👉ow.ly/HU9e50Y0yKV

#TaxExperts #VAT #TaxCompliance

Busy street scene with numerous auto rickshaws, cars, and pedestrians navigating a crowded urban area.

Nigeria’s tax reform bills recently took effect, aiming to boost domestic revenue & build a more inclusive tax system.
The reforms exempt 97% of small informal operators & target the top 3% - but can this be implemented in practice?

Find out more about informal taxation on our website 🔗

Increasing tax collection in African countries: The role of information technology - ICTD Abstract Many African countries struggle to collect an adequate amount of tax revenue to support needed...

Our Research Fellow Fabrizio Santoro's paper, co-authored with @oyebolaoo.bsky.social, was one of the most read articles online of @oxfordcsae.bsky.social's #JournalofAfricanEconomies in 2025! 🎉

Read their paper on the role of IT in tax collection here ➡️ ow.ly/87vJ50XW4CT

#TaxExperts #openaccess

Prof Joshi giving a presentation at an ICTD workshop on Gender and Tax, held in Ghana, November 2016.

We congratulate Prof Anuradha Joshi, a long-time collaborator of ICTD, for her recent appointment as Director of our homebase, the Institute of Development Studies! 🎉

Read the full story here: https://ow.ly/a4Pz50XU6mA

#DevelopmentResearch #TaxResearch #GenderAndTax

With a looming 2027 deadline for a #UNTaxConvention, significant challenges remain. In an interview with
@taxnotes.com, our researcher Frederik Heitmüller flagged fundamental questions on how it will function in practice and relate to existing tax agreements: ow.ly/bnxP50XTYNg

#TaxExperts

Warm congratulations to Professor Anuradha Joshi on her appointment as Director of @ids.ac.uk.

A long-standing collaborator with ICTD, Prof Joshi has helped shape important research on women and taxation. We look forward to continuing this engagement!

#Taxation #TaxInAfrica

A diverse group of 30 people from the ICTD team posing on outdoor stone steps in front of a brick building with a wooden door.

This year saw a big shift in the development sector, one marked by challenges for many countries.
To our tax & development community: your collaboration has been essential; thank you for your continued trust & engagement as we work together towards effective & equitable tax systems.

Happy holidays!

ICTD 2025 Recap: A year of research and impact

Most read policy brief: Taxing the Wealthy in Lower-Income Countries

Most read blog: Pakistanis are paying over 1.7 billion GBP in zakat every year - mostly to women

Thank you to all our partners for making this work possible and to the 35,035 followers acrosss all our social media platforms.

From publications to policy engagement, 2025 was a busy year for our team.

➡️Swipe through for a snapshot of the research we published this year. Want to join the conversation? Visit our website to check our most read publications and more!

#TaxExperts #TaxinAfrica #2025Recap #YearInReview

Thinking Beyond Revenue: Estimating the Cost Effectiveness of Ghana’s Presumptive Tax Stamp - ICTD This paper provides the first estimate of the cost effectiveness of a presumptive tax in a lower-income country, using Ghana as a case study.

Did you know that in Ghana, the Tax Stamp costs 9x more to administer than it collects?📈

New ICTD research explains why these lump-sum presumptive taxes often fail — and what governments can do instead: https://ow.ly/NtpT50XGZ5c

Max Gallien

#Taxation #TaxResearch #InformalTax #InformalEconomy

In the final edition of ICTD Insights, we round-up key publications, events, and other highlights of 2025 -- a year marked by transformative shifts in the tax and development sector.

📬Register here so you don't miss it 👉 https://ow.ly/40Sn50QxVQI

#Taxation #TaxExperts #TaxResearch #TaxPolicy

Awa Diouf, ICTD Research Fellow, standing in front of the banner displaying the branding and name of the 2025 T20 Summit in South Africa.

For the first time ever, the #G20Summit was in Africa, placing digital transformation at the centre of the global agenda.

Awa Diouf explores how DPI and digital money could transform tax systems across the continent: https://ow.ly/yiQa50XGU6H

#G20SouthAfrica #Taxation #DigitalGovernance #TaxExpert

A collage of the pictures of 6 students from ICTD's Research on Tax and Development course on which "Why tax professionals choose the ICTD course?" is superimposed.

We asked this year's alumni of our Research on Tax and Development course to share their thoughts on the experience.

🎥Watch this video to hear what they had to say ➡️ https://ow.ly/gnK750XGS9I

#TaxExpert #TaxCourse #ResearchTraining #Taxation #TaxAfrica

LoGRI Conference in Cotonou, Benin Drives Dialogue on Property Tax Reform in Lower-Income Countries - ICTD ICTD's LoGRI hosted a conference in Cotonou discuss how local governments can tap into the potential of property taxation,.

#ICYMI: The Local Government Revenue Initiative (LoGRI), a semi-autonomous initiative of ICTD, held a conference in Contou, Benin on how local governments can tap into the potential of #PropertyTaxation.

Read the summary here: https://ow.ly/zzqq50XK9Ep

#TaxExperts #Taxation