30/04/2021 - The Global Forum launched its Train the Trainer pilot programme under the umbrella of the Africa Initiative in April 2021. The project is designed to assist participating jurisdictions in providing local training to tax auditors and investigators. It aims at raising awareness on cross-border administrative assistance in tax matters, in particular the exchange of information on request, and building administrations’ capacity to use these instruments effectively in their day-to-day work.

The pilot programme started with two weeks of training for the future trainers, one for representatives from English-speaking countries, the other for those from French-speaking countries. In total, 35 officials from 19 African tax administrations are benefiting, with an immediate commitment to train more than 500 colleagues collectively by the end of 2021.

These courses are a concrete example of skills transfer in a discipline that is still new to the vast majority of developing countries. The future trainers are now responsible for adapting the training materials to the specific context of their country and for implementing a strategy to share the knowledge and skills acquired within their administrations. The Global Forum Secretariat will support them in organising the first local trainings.

The Train the Trainer programme should enable African countries to take greater advantage of the vast potential of information exchange to improve tax compliance and increase tax revenues. Many countries are already on the right track and their progress will be highlighted in the forthcoming Tax Transparency in Africa 2021 report, which will be released during the next Africa Initiative meeting scheduled for 23-26 May.

The Africa Initiative was created six years ago in the belief that tax transparency and exchange of information are powerful tools to combat tax evasion and illicit financial flows and increase the resources needed to finance Africa's economic development. The development of a sustainable culture of exchange of information within tax administrations across the continent is one of the pillars of the Initiative, which is echoed by the launch of the Train the Trainer programme.

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For further information, journalists should contact Pascal Saint-Amans, Director of the OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration, (+33 1 45 24 91 08) or Zayda Manatta, Head of the Global Forum Secretariat (+33 1 45 24 82 29).