By Addoulie Nyockeh
The Commissioner General of the Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA), Yankuba Darboe, has urged African tax administrations to strengthen regional cooperation and policy coherence in order to safeguard the continent’s tax base and finance sustainable development. He made the remarks at the West African Tax Administration Forum (WATAF) Annual General Meeting and High-Level Policy Dialogue in Accra, Ghana.
In his keynote address, Mr. Darboe congratulated WATAF on its 15th anniversary, commending the forum for promoting cooperation, capacity development, and stronger tax administration across West Africa. He emphasized that while African countries differ in language, size, and legal systems, they face common challenges in tax administration — challenges that increasingly transcend national borders.
“Africa’s development cannot be outsourced,” Darboe declared. “Development partners, foreign investment, and concessional financing will remain important, but ultimately, African countries must progressively finance a greater share of their own development.”
He highlighted the critical role of domestic resource mobilisation in funding education, healthcare, infrastructure, and security. However, he warned that Africa continues to lose vast sums through illicit financial flows, aggressive tax planning, and trade misinvoicing. According to UNCTAD, the continent loses approximately $88.6 billion annually, equivalent to 3.7 percent of its GDP.
Darboe stressed that protecting Africa’s tax base requires collective action. Multinational businesses operate across borders, while tax administrations remain largely national, creating an imbalance that can only be addressed through cooperation and policy coherence. He called for coordinated responses at national, regional, and continental levels, noting Africa’s growing influence in international tax negotiations, such as the push for a United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation.
The Commissioner General praised the African Tax Administration Forum (ATAF) for its role in building technical capacity and ensuring Africa’s voice is heard globally, while urging WATAF to move from “cooperation in principle to cooperation in practice.” He proposed greater information sharing, regional networks of tax experts, and collective intelligence on emerging risks.
On leadership, Darboe underscored that technology and laws alone cannot transform institutions people and leadership do. He described the modern Commissioner General as not just an administrator but a strategist, reform champion, and protector of institutional integrity. He acknowledged that tax reforms often face resistance, but argued that ambitious reforms require courage and political support.
“If you embark on a major reform and nobody resists it, perhaps the reform is not ambitious enough,” he remarked.
Darboe concluded by urging African tax administrations to speak with one coherent voice on fundamental issues, stressing that collective action is key to defending taxing rights and ensuring Africa’s wealth contributes fairly to its development.
As WATAF enters its next chapter, he called for the forum to evolve into a stronger instrument for practical cooperation, technical capacity, and collective action. “Individually, our administrations will always have limitations. Collectively, our possibilities are much greater,” he said.
