ACCRA, Ghana, September 16, 2026 The Commissioner General of the Gambia Revenue Authority has called for stronger domestic revenue mobilisation and closer cooperation among African tax administrations as countries across the continent seek to finance development more sustainably.
The Commissioner General made the remarks during the opening of the 8th WATAF High Level Policy Dialogue and 23rd General Assembly in Accra, Ghana, held under the theme, “Building Stronger Tax Administrations for Revenue Mobilisation and Sustainable Development.”
Addressing participants at the gathering, the Commissioner General said Africa must take greater responsibility for financing its own development.
He acknowledged the continued importance of development partners and foreign investment but said African countries should progressively increase the share of development spending financed through domestic resources.
The Commissioner General said revenue mobilisation was about more than tax collection, noting that effective domestic revenue systems give governments the resources needed to provide essential public services and infrastructure.
These include education, healthcare, roads, electricity, security and other areas that directly support economic and social development.
He also called for greater cooperation between tax authorities across Africa to tackle illicit financial flows and other practices that reduce the continent’s tax revenues.
Among the challenges he identified were trade misinvoicing, abusive transfer pricing, tax avoidance and artificial profit shifting.
The Commissioner General urged African tax administrations to strengthen the exchange of information and intelligence on emerging risks while expanding cooperation in areas where countries can share expertise.
He also called for greater sharing of effective digital solutions as tax authorities seek to modernise their systems and improve their ability to identify and address emerging risks.
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