Barbados’ success recognised

Member states of Commonwealth Association of Tax Administrators are being told that they can learn from Barbados regarding the move towards economic independence.

The suggestion has come from Executive Director of the Commonwealth Association of Tax Administrators (CATA), Duncan Onduru who noted during the opening of 37th CATA Technical Conference at the Hilton Hotel yesterday morning, that based on available statistics Barbados seems to have made tremendous strides towards economic independence. He was speaking to the country’s recent ranking of 59th in the world in the recent United Nations Human Development Index.

 

“Part of our take-away from this Conference is to learn the secret that has made this country move far ahead of its peers. We never know, perhaps it is the efficiency with which they manage their tax system,” he said.

 

He made the point while noting that though many countries have attained political independence, many are still faced with the challenge of economic dependence. In fact, he said that the ability of a country to finance its expenditure commitments through its internally generated resources is the highest mark of independence.

 

“We are all aware that the majority of our member countries are undergoing difficult economic times. The sluggish economic growth rate, still hanging in low single digits, the adverse currency exchange rates, the plummeting oil and metal prices, the mounting debt portfolios and the huge fiscal deficits have had profound adverse effects on the people’s well-being and their trust in governments and institutions. For the tax administrations on whose shoulders sometimes the burden lies, there is no better time to summon our collective approach to some of these challenges,” he said.

 

He maintained that a unilateral approach to some of these issues is neither feasible nor viable; explaining that without forging strategic alliances, some of these challenges would remain insurmountable. As such, he said CATA members are fortunate that the reach of the Association straddles the five continents and so within the body they have all the conceivable resources that if well-tapped and harnessed, can have not only a profound impact on their economies, but in their abilities to mobilise their domestic resources through effective tax policies and efficient tax administration.

 

“During the course of this Conference, therefore, we will have the opportunity to share experience from all the corners of this globe – from as far east as Asia, to Africa, to Europe, Canada and the Caribbean. It is quite rare that such rich mixtures of countries are brought under one roof in a single event. This is what sets CATA apart from other regional organisation. In spite of these, we still do recognise our own internal limitations and to address these we are continually seeking strategic partnerships with other relevant tax organisations and institutions for the best interest of our members. Last month, we held one of the first meetings of the regional and international tax networks – a meeting that was facilitated by the International Tax Compact,” he added.

 

The CATA official explained that meeting arose out of the need to have a more co-ordinated approach to capacity building in the area of taxation. Onduru said it is hoped that they will be able to further engage the several tax networks that were represented at that meeting to formalise the process of co-operation through a memorandum of understanding.