President John Dramani Mahama has charged African Heads of State to ensure tax compliance as a key measure to address the continent’s substantial financing gap.
While delivering his keynote address as Champion on African Union Financial Institutions at the Heads of State and Government breakfast dialogue at the AU Commission headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on February 16, he highlighted the estimated $402 billion annual financing gap facing Africa until 2030.
“Addressing the financial gap requires a multifaceted approach. Domestic resource mobilization is crucial for improving tax administration, combating illicit financial flows and encouraging the culture of tax compliance,” Mahama said.
John Mahama also pointed out other challenges Africa faces, including climate crises, geopolitical tensions, and diseases, which threaten the continent’s growth and sustainable development.
He stressed the importance of strategic investments in key sectors like health, education, energy, and technology, acknowledging the substantial financing gap for these investments to deal with these challenges.
“This financing gap is not merely a statistic. It represents the unrealized potential of millions of Africans whose dream for a better life depends on our ability to invest wisely in infrastructure, education, technology, and health.”
On her part, the Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, called on African leaders to reduce their appetite for borrowing and rather find innovative ways to attract and sustain investments into the continent.
“We must take advantage of investment that comes to Africa and be able to sustain them for our own development,” she said.
She indicated that the continent could raise funding through value addition to natural resources, tapping into pension funds to raise patient capital to fund development.
