African governments hope digital taxes will fill a budget hole
Putting levies on mobile money is easier than taxing profits of multinationals
The digital economy is bringing Africans together. The same cannot be said for attempts to tax it. Levies on mobile and internet services have sparked street protests in Uganda, cabinet squabbles in Nigeria and a parliamentary brawl in Ghana. In August Congolese officials even confiscated the passports of telecoms executives to try to make them cough up.
This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Tempting—but not so easy”
Middle East & Africa October 15th 2022
- Peter Obi, a man who carries his own suitcases, could be Nigeria’s next president
- African governments hope digital taxes will fill a budget hole
- Despite lethal repression, Iran’s protests continue
- Hamas ponders whether to cosy up to Syria’s brutal despot
- Middle Eastern countries are sitting on an ocean of natural gas
From the October 15th 2022 edition
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America under Joe Biden plays the pragmatist in Africa
Donald Trump is likely to follow suit
New cures for Africa’s most gruesome diseases
Sleeping sickness, riverblindess and more could be tackled
Nigeria seeks to restore pride in its artefacts, ancient and modern
A new museum in Benin City will showcase “a cauldron of creativity”
Donald Trump’s new Arab pal
Will a Lebanese-American businessman influence the incoming administration in the region?
Israel and Hizbullah strike a fragile deal to end their war
Joe Biden makes a last push to bring peace to the Middle East
The arrest warrant is a diplomatic disaster for Netanyahu
But may also undermine the International Criminal Court