About Us

The International Tax Justice Academy (ITJA) is an annual training programme that TJNA launched in 2014. Under the motto ‘‘Building the next generation of tax justice champions’’, ITJA is designed as a pan African initiative that seeks to inspire, empower and mobilise citizens across Africa through bridging the existing knowledge gap on tax justice in Africa. This week-long key capacity building programme is intended for CSOs, activists trade unions students and other actors interested in tax justice and domestic resource mobilisation in Africa. We believe that for civil society actors to influence change towards fair and just tax systems and stopping the bleeding of African financial resources, would require a combination of passion, knowledge, strategy and collaboration Over the last 4 years over 380 participants have undertaken the training. ITJA will be held this year in Dakar, Senegal, Kenya, from the 24^th to the 28^th June 2019.

380+ participants trained

15+ Speakers

Background

Taxation is a sovereign matter and can be exercised through domestic legislation and regulations. However, with globalisation, taxation isn’t practiced within national boundaries any longer at both physical and digital levels. Many African countries have reported concerns about the fiscal challenges they face as their economies become increasingly digitalised. That digitalisation enables multinational enterprises (MNEs) to carry out business in African countries with little to no physical presence in their countries makes it difficult for African countries to establish taxing rights over the profits the MNEs are making from the business activities it carried out on their soil. Fiscal internationalization and digitalization prompt the need for the definition of a global taxation standard. The Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Project which commenced in 2014 saw the G20 select the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as the multilateral organisation to bind countries together and agree on rules on the changes to international taxation. However, this arrangement has proven exclusive and has not allowed maximum participation in the global rule setting. Is there still a legitimate role for both the OECD and the United Nations? Are countries willing to move to unilateral measures as seen in other aspects of global life recently?