The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), in collaboration with the West African Tax Administration Forum (WATAF) and Tax Justice Network Africa (TJNA), will convene a high-level Parliamentary Tax Session focused on addressing tax-related illicit financial flows (IFFs) and enhancing domestic resource mobilisation across the region on 11 May 2026 in Abuja, Nigeria.
Africa continues billions of dollars annually through IFFs driven largely by tax evasion, profit shifting, trade misinvoicing, and harmful tax practices. These losses significantly undermine the continent’s ability to finance its own development priorities.
Countries in West Africa face a widening domestic resource mobilisation gap amid declining development assistance, rising public debt, and growing fiscal pressures. At the same time, fragmented tax systems and weak policy coordination across borders create opportunities for revenue leakages and harmful tax competition.
The Parliamentary Tax Sessions will bring together MPs from ECOWAS Member States to strengthen their capacity in shaping fair, transparent, and effective tax systems. Parliamentarians are key to translating regional tax directives into national legislation, strengthening oversight of tax policy implementation, and promoting transparency and accountability in fiscal governance.
This session provides a dedicated platform for parliamentarians to engage with evidence, exchange experiences, and identify concrete legislative and oversight priorities to strengthen tax governance across the region.
The convening will also highlight findings from the Anti-IFF Policy Tracker tool, developed by the African Union Commission and Tax Justice Network Africa. Following its piloting in several ECOWAS member states, including Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Liberia, the Tracker has generated country-level evidence on the strengths and weaknesses of legal, institutional, data, and inter-agency frameworks used to curb tax-related IFFs.
Parliamentarians will also address the broader challenge of fiscal transition, the shift from reliance on external aid and volatile extractive revenues toward sustainable domestic resource mobilisation. Exploring how regionally harmonised health taxes can reduce illicit trade, counter industry interference, and safeguard fiscal policy space, offer ECOWAS member states a strategic opportunity to increase revenue while advancing public health objectives.
The sessions will further raise awareness on the ongoing negotiations toward a United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation, an African-led initiative aimed at creating a more inclusive and equitable global tax system. While the process represents a historic opportunity for African countries to shape international tax rules, participation has remained limited.
By equipping parliamentarians with evidence, tools, and shared regional priorities, these sessions seek to help ECOWAS reclaim public resources and put them to work for the people.
For more information on the ECOWAS Parliamentary Tax Sessions, please contact Everlyn Muendo at emuendo[@]taxjusticeafrica.net
