Sijbren Cnossen is Professor of Economics at the University of Pretoria and Academic Partner of CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis. He is Professor Emeritus of Economics of the University of Maastricht and Professor Emeritus of Tax Law of Erasmus University Rotterdam. Prof Cnossen previously occupied the Henry Shattuck Chair at the Law School of Harvard University and the Global Law Chair at the University of New York. He has advised many countries on the design of their tax systems under the auspices of the IMF, the World Bank, USAID, OECD, EU Commission, HIID, and GTZ. He has published numerous books and articles on the effects of taxation and on tax policy, including issues pertaining to tax coordination, income and corporation taxes, value- added tax, and excise duties.

Most African countries are in dire need of more tax revenue. In 28 out of 45 countries with a value-added tax (VAT), total tax revenue as a percentage of GDP is around 15% or less, falling short of what is necessary to finance basic human and economic development. Far from being revenue-raising instruments, current African VATs are riddled with exemptions, exclusions, and zero rates on domestic goods and services that depress revenue, are highly distortionary, and greatly complicate the administration of VAT.

Modernizing VATs in Africa enables policymakers, professionals, and students to analyse African tax systems to ascertain how they can be modernized. It explains the case for VAT base-broadening over rate-increasing, arguing that exemptions and zero rates mainly accrue benefits for higher-income groups. Even more persuasively, it demonstrates that the net result of fiscal systems can be equalizing if the revenue of broad-based VATs is used to finance in-kind transfers, such as healthcare and education. VAT modernization should be used to enable governments to finance development; Modernizing VATs in Africa puts a compelling case forward for how and why this can be achieved.