Tax support from France

Initiative aims to increase public revenue

The Ministry of Finance (MoF) launched an initiative to promote the local tax administration, in cooperation with France. The project, ‘Modernizing the administrative and operational capacity of the Tax Administration’, extends over 18 months and is funded by the European Union (EU) through a €1.8 million ($2.4 million) grant. It is the third bilateral twinning initiative with France.

The objective of the project is to increase tax revenues and improve tax governance. It seeks to improve the performance and security of the Tax Administration and enhance collection, both quantitatively and qualitatively, through administrative reform, greater transparency, and efficient communication with citizens.

“Multi-lateral cooperation is within the European Neighborhood Policy, and this project is within the EU’s action plan to support local reforms,” said Alain Bifani, General Director of the MoF. The national reform plan, presented at the Paris III conference in 2007, states that the sizeable fiscal adjustment required to reduce the debt to GDP ratio must include serious revenue enhancing measures.

The project includes five main components: Tax Administration reorganization, tax governance, call center support, disaster recovery site, and support to supplies procurement.