In the words of the old saying, there is always something new out of Africa. This new edition of TaxIn Africa starts with feature articles. How does a tax system function in a hyperinflationary economy? Our colleagues in Zimbabwe give some of the answers. Although generally tax free as regards profits, NGOs are still bound to account for tax on salaries and allowances, and may not be exempted from VAT and duty. They also have to account for withholding taxes on local purchases. We summarise the situation for NGOs in Ethiopia. The old story about death and taxes surfaces in our sideways look at how American accounting standards now account for uncertainty in tax positions. We then return to NGOs, but now in South Sudan. No doubt the young tax system continues to develop.
The next section focuses on changes in tax legislation in certain African countries; Mauritius, Nigeria and Malawi in this edition.
In this information age, many tax authorities have gone online, realising that compliance is best achieved by transparency. We review half a dozen of Africa’s national tax authority websites. We find that they vary considerably in quality.
In the last part of the technical section, we present short news items. To access more information about tax in Africa, we offer a free CD, “Investing in Africa 2007” with information on 37 African countries (a 2008 edition is in the early stages of preparation). We also list our tax leaders in Africa and provide their phone numbers and email addresses. The Africa Tax Desk (cmlovatt@deloitte.com) can also help you and maintains a contact list of tax experts for all African countries.