MENA Tax Experts Discussions on Ways to Improve the Fiscal Climate for Investment

Cairo, 19-20 June 2007

3nd Meeting of Working Group 3 of the MENA-OECD Investment Programme on
‘Tax Policy for Investment’

Regional Dialogue on Fiscal Initiatives to Improve Investment Climate

Hosted by the Egyptian Ministry of Finance, senior tax and investment officials from across the MENA region gathered in Cairo, on 19-20 June, for the third meeting of Working Group 3 (Tax Policy for Investment) of the MENA-OECD Investment Programme.  Participants list included the Egyptian Deputy Minister of Finance and Co-chair of WG3, Mr. Ashraf Al Arabi; the Head of Department of EU and Foreign Relations at the Turkish Revenue Administration and Co-chair of WG3; Mr. Timur Çakmak, the Chair of the OECD Working Party 2 of the Committee of Fiscal Affairs, Mr. Christian Valenduc, as well as the Director of the MENA-OECD Investment Programme, Dr. Rainer Geiger.

At the meeting, more than fifty participants including representatives from eleven MENA countries, international organizations and the private sector held discussions on tax reform initiatives of MENA countries, and consider findings of recent tax policy projects by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).  A key focus of the meeting was on tax issues arising in relation to foreign direct investment (FDI). They also agreed on the topic for the next meeting of Working Group 3 (WG3) to be held in 2008: “Examining tax impediments to SME financing and tax compliance”. Additionally, a draft text that reviews approaches supportive of tax policy development, including steps towards improved measurement of the tax burden on business was considered.

The WG3 meeting also officially launched a Regional Tax Policy Training Programme to provide training through a series of seminars and workshops, targeted at tax officials of countries in the MENA region, with the OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration called upon to organize tax events in its areas of expertise. Facilities for the programme are generously provided by the government of Egypt.

For more information about the MENA-OECD Investment Programme and the WG3 meeting, please consult the MENA website at the following address: www.oecd.org/mena/investment

Agenda

Logistical Note

Participants List

Background Documents:

• Policy Considerations in the Taxation of FDI
• Implications of tax policy for SME growth and tax compliance
• Report on the WG3 Activities of The MENA-OECD Investment Programme:Achievements and Future Work
• Tax Incentives for Investment – A Global Perspective: Experiences in MENA and non-MENA countries
• Issues for discussion in the roundtable on Taxation and FDI 

General Information:

• OECD's Current Tax Agenda

Presentations:

Session I. Presentations on Taxation, Investment, and Tax Reform Initiatives

• Egyptian Tax Reform Agenda
  Mr.Ashraf Al Arabi, Deputy Minister for Tax Policy, Egyptian Ministry of Finance
• Improvement of FDI and Tax reforms in Turkey
  Mr. Timur Çakmak, Head of Department of EU and Foreign Relations at the Turkish Revenue Administration and Co-chair of WG3
• Tax Expenditure Report in Morocco
  Mr. Said Mifdal,Head of Tax Statistics and Estimates Service,Général Tax Administration, Morocco
• Corporate Tax Reform and Investment: Experience in UK & OECD Countries
  Alan Carter ,Senior Economist, Analysis Division, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, UK
• Tax Incentives and FDI Performance
  Dr. Ana Cebreiro, Tax Economist, OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration and MENA-OECD Investment Programme

Session II. Draft Declaration on Tax Policy Development Supportive of Investment

• Proposed Declaration on Tax Policy Development Supportive of Investment
  Dr. W. Steven Clark, Head, Horizontal Programmes Unit, CTPA Manager, MENA-OECD Tax Project

Session III. Work Programme for 2007-2008

• MENA Center for Investment -Next Steps
  Dr. Zakaria Hejres, Deputy Chief Executive, Economic Development Board, Bahrain
• MENA Regional Tax & Financial Management Training Center
  Mr.Ashraf Al Arabi, Deputy Minister for Tax Policy, Egyptian Ministry of Finance
• 2007-08 work programme at the OECD Multilateral Tax Training Centre, in Ankara
  Mr. Timur Çakmak, Head of Department of EU and Foreign Relations at the Turkish Revenue Administration and Co-chair of WG3
• Escuela de la Hacienda Pública (School of Public Finance)Mr. Bienvenido Pascual, Area Coordinator, Institute for Fiscal Studies, Madrid, Spain
• Tax policy for investment
  Dr. Ana Cebreiro, Tax Economist, OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration and MENA-OECD Investment Programme

Session IV. Roundtable on Taxation and Foreign Direct Investment

• Tax and Investment: Through the Growth Lens On-going Reforms and Challenges
  Mr. Sebastian S. James, Tax Policy Consultant, Foreign Investment Advisory Service (FIAS)
• Policy Considerations in the Taxation of Foreign Direct Investment: Summary of findings of a 2005-06 OECD project
  Dr. W. Steven Clark, Head, Horizontal Programmes Unit, CTPA Manager, MENA-OECD Tax Project
• Roundtable on Taxation and FDI
  Mr. C. Alexander Severens, Treasury Department Financial Attaché, Embassy of the United States of America, Cairo

Session V. Taxation of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs)

• SME Taxation: SMEs – Specific Problems and Opportunities: On-going Reforms and Challenges
  Mr. Sebastian S. James, Tax Policy Consultant, Foreign Investment Advisory Service (FIAS)
• Tax Policy for SME Growth and Tax Compliance (Proposal for 2008 WG3 meeting)
  M. Christian Valenduc, Conseiller général des Finances, Ministère des Finances, Belgium
  Dr. W. Steven Clark, Head, Horizontal Programmes Unit, CTPA Manager, MENA-OECD Tax Project
• Many are called, few are chosen: The dilemma of taxing SMEs
  Alan Carter ,Senior Economist, Analysis Division, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, UK