AFRODAD Joins Tax justice Campaigners to Pushback G7’s Newly Announced Reforms in the Global Tax System
On the 7th of July 2021, AFRODAD joined various tax justice campaigners who are calling for a pushback of a deal reached by seven wealthy countries to impose a minimum tax on multinational companies because would benefit rich nations at the expense of poor ones. The webinar which has been organised by Tax Justice Network (TJNA) brought together tax justice experts, activists, and members of civil society from Africa/the Global South in order to unpack the G7’s proposed reforms, examine their implications, and discuss the alternatives before time runs out and the G7 receives the necessary endorsement to proceed.
Following their 4th-5th June meeting, the members of the G7 have announced their commitment to reforming the global tax system in order to cut down on cross-border corporate tax evasion. Having committed to adopting the OECD’s two-pillar proposals, the G7 is now seeking broader approval in advance of the 9 July meeting of G20 finance ministers. Given the current context, these proposals might seem like a historic breakthrough in the fight against corporate impunity.
However, the devil appears to live in the details. The G7’s proposals have been met with criticism and even outright rejection by many progressive organisations and tax justice networks, who argue that the two-pillar approach is ineffective, unambitious, and constructed primarily for the benefit of wealthy nations constituting the G7. There are also serious concerns that the interests of the developing world are ignored in closed platforms such as the G7 and the OECD, where these proposals originate. Through their unilateral action, these nations are attempting to set the agenda on global tax reform without the equal participation of the developing world.
Major concern therefore being raised by tax justice campaigners is that that the very voices needed most in this discussion – movements and activists from the developing world and especially Africa – are being left behind. The conversation revolved around (I) unpacking and critiquing G7 reforms in a concise discussion, accessible to activists, the media, and researchers working outside of the tax justice sphere; and (ii) and providing a platform for developing a Global South perspective on international tax reform around few key questions such as: What are our specific needs/challenges, and how can these be met? Who should drive the process of reform? What are the alternatives?