Plenary session
Panel discussion: The policy impact of revenue authority research collaboration in sub-Saharan Africa

Auditorium: Thursday, 7 September 2023: 15:30-17:00 (UTC+2)

On 7 September, the panel discussion on the policy impact of revenue authority research collaboration in sub-Saharan Africa will cover how access to tax data for research is slowly increasing in sub-Saharan Africa, and how this research can help developing countries. Is the research finding its way through the proper channels and falling on the right policy ears? Increasing domestic revenue is key to funding public resources and research may provide answers. Research collaborations with revenue authorities could provide the much-needed solutions to support evidence-based policymaking.

This session will include perspectives from revenue authorities, researchers, and policymakers. This panel will discuss the whole process from the start of a research collaboration, conducting the research, and ensuring it reaches the policy channels. 

This session will be held from 15:30–17:00 and will include approximately 45 minutes for Q&A with the audience. Confirmed speakers include Prof Ingrid Woolard, Stellenbosch University; Dr Waziona Ligomeka, Ministry of Finance, Malawi; Assistant Commissioner Allen Nassanga, Uganda Revenue Authority, and Director Ezekiel Phiri, Zambia Revenue Authority and Prof Jukka Pirtillä, UNU-WIDER and University of Helsinki.

Programme
15:30-15:38 Brief introduction to the session by Jukka Pirttilä | UNU-WIDER
15:38-15:50 First question to speakers
15:50-16:30 Moderated debate 
16:30-17:00 Q&A
Video

Panel discussion | The policy impact of revenue authority research collaboration in sub-Saharan Africa

BACK TO EVENT

Revving up revenue for development – the role of domestic resource mobilization

 

RESOURCES

Programme

Information note for local participants

COLLABORATORS

15:30-17:00 (UTC+2)

Wall, DeniseDenise Wall | Moderator

Denise Wall is a journalist who has spent nearly 25 years working in print, radio, television and online news and podcasts. She has reported on a range of social issues at media organisations such as the Finnish Broadcasting Company Yle, the Paris-based AFP and DowJones Newswires/The Wall Street Journal. Wall has also held senior roles in corporate and marketing communications with Finnish firms operating globally. She currently works as an independent consultant and has her own multimedia communications company Wallcomms.

Jukka PirttilaJukka Pirttilä | Presenter

Jukka Pirttilä is a professor of public economics at the University of Helsinki and also works as a Non-Resident Senior Research Fellow at UNU-WIDER. He has previously worked for the University of Tampere, Labour Institute for Economic Research (Helsinki, Finland) and the Bank of Finland. He conducts research on topics related to taxation and social protection in developing countries. 

Pirttilä has a doctorate in economics from the University of Helsinki and is a Fellow of the CESifo network. His research has been published in journals such as Journal of Public Economics, Journal of Development Economics, Economic Journal and the European Economic Review.

NassangaAllen Nassanga | Panelist

Allen Nassanga is a seasoned professional with over a decade of experience at URA (Uganda Revenue Authority). She has played pivotal roles in several ICT transformational projects, notably as a member of the ICT and Business Process Re-engineering workgroups that introduced the Integrated Tax Administration System (ETAX), revolutionizing tax processes through e-filing and online payment. Serving as a project manager for the Data Warehouse/Business Intelligence project (EHUB), she led efforts to integrate data and enhance analytics within URA.

In 2019, Allen led the Integrated Service Support Project (ISSP), driving significant improvements in service support and delivery, transforming the client service support function. Notably, she spearheaded the development of a groundbreaking research lab, a pioneering initiative in the region, aimed at providing tax administration data for research purposes.

Ligomeka, WazionaWaziona Ligomeka | Panelist

Waziona Ligomeka is a tax economist with 15+ years of experience in tax policy, tax administration, and macroeconomic analysis. He is a member of the United Nations (UN) Committee of Tax Experts in International Cooperation. His current work focuses on tax policy, tax administration, and modernization of tax administration functions in developing countries. He received his Ph.D. in Development Studies (Taxation) from the University of Sussex (UK), a Masters's in International Development Policy (Taxation) from Duke University (USA), and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from the University of Malawi.

Woolard, IngridIngrid Woolard | Panelist

Ingrid Woolard is Professor of Economics at Stellenbosch University and Honorary Professor of Economics at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. Her research interests include labour market policy, social protection and fiscal policy.  She is strongly committed to providing research-led policy advice. From 2014 to 2018 she served as a member of the Davis Tax Committee in South Africa which advised six consecutive Ministers of Finance on tax reform for inclusive growth.

Phiri, EzekielEzekiel Phiri | Panelist

Ezekiel Phiri is a tax administration and policy expert with over 15 years of practical experience. He is currently heading a department responsible for data analytics, research and policy, corporate planning and data quality. He is a short-term expert for the International Monetary fund in the area of tax administration. Previously, he has worked in academia and lectured in undergraduate courses (public sector economics, health economics, environmental economics and intermediate macroeconomics).