African-Finnish Partnerships on Taxation and Digital Transformations programme launched to foster interoperable digital tax systems in Africa
AFP-TDT will work through the African Tax Administration Forum to strengthen domestic resource mobilisation.
The African-Finnish Partnerships on Taxation and Digital Transformations (AFP-TDT) programme was formally launched on 3rd of November in Cairo on the margins of the Annual Meetings of the African Tax Administration Forum (ATAF). The EUR 3.7 million programme, funded by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland for 2026–2029, supports African tax administrations in developing effective, secure, interoperable and sustainable digital tax systems as a basis for stronger domestic resource mobilisation.
The Programme combines three elements that support each other and offer a base for lasting impact. Technical assistance and learning take place through secondments and partnerships involving a wide variety of Finnish digital-sector actors. Action-oriented research provides knowledge and information to support this work. Pan-African cooperation builds synergies around interoperability and digital taxation systems to support the sustainability of the programme.
Partnerships are the key to the programme: with strong mutual partnerships and co-learning, programme delivers concrete solutions and value to ATAF member administrations. Action-oriented dynamic research ensures that knowledge and lessons from country-level actions are heard and solutions can be scaled.
“HAUS wants to put an emphasis on institutional cooperation. Our role is not to build parallel structures, but to connect Finnish public and private sector expertise with strong partner institutions and practical reform needs.”
Kyösti Väkeväinen, Managing Director, HAUS
Building on proven African solutions
AFP-TDT works with and through the ATAF Innovation Hub, ensuring that support is aligned with ATAF’s mandate and reaches its member administrations. With the Hub, the programme will develop a digital transformation strategy and a change management guide that administrations at different levels of digital maturity can adapt to their own context. Particular emphasis is placed on documenting solutions already developed by African tax administrations and making them available across the membership.
“Through the ATAF Innovation Hub, while leveraging Finnish expertise; this partnership aims to facilitate knowledge exchange, foster innovation and support the adoption of digital technologies that enhance tax administration efficiency and domestic resource mobilisation in Africa.”
Mary Baine, Executive Secretary, ATAF
Evidence for policy and practice
UNU-WIDER leads the programme’s action-oriented research component. Research is co-created with revenue authorities and linked directly to technical assistance, so that its findings inform training, policy dialogue and decision-making. This policy-relevant research is crucial to ensuring that the rapid development of digital institutions is grounded in evidence and responds to existing needs.
“UNU-WIDER has worked for over a decade with African governments, tax authorities and researchers to generate evidence on how countries can mobilize public revenue in a sustainable way. We are pleased to build on this work together with HAUS and ATAF, bringing our respective expertise in domestic revenue mobilization to this partnership.
Patricia Justino, UNU-WIDER Director
Strengthening pan-African cooperation
The programme connects practical digital transformation work and research with wider pan-African cooperation and policy dialogue. Working through and together with existing African-led forums and partnerships the programme fosters synergies and facilitates coordination among pan-African actors. It connects digitalization and interoperability efforts of tax administrations with similar efforts by other public finance oversight institutions (e.g. supreme audit institutions (SAI) and financial intelligence Units (FIU) under the African Union led multi-partner action against illicit financial flows (IFFs).
“Finland is pleased to partner in African-led cooperation on digitalization of taxation through this partnership. The programme model brings together digital expertise, research and dialogue to create sustainable results”. Dr. Timo Voipio, Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Finland
About AFP-TDT. The African-Finnish Partnerships on Taxation and Digital Transformations programme runs from 1 July 2026 to 31 December 2029, with a budget of EUR 3.7 million from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland.
About HAUS: HAUS Finnish Institute of Public Management Ltd is a state-owned special-purpose company that provides training and development services to public sector both domestically and globally. Through international cooperation projects, HAUS also connects Finnish public- and private-sector expertise with partner institutions to support public administration development.
About ATAF: The African Tax Administration Forum (ATAF) is a pan-African intergovernmental organisation comprising 45 member countries, dedicated to strengthening tax systems and enhancing domestic resource mobilisation across Africa. ATAF supports African countries through technical assistance, capacity building, research, tax policy and legislative support, and digital transformation initiatives aimed at improving tax administration and strengthening revenue collection. The organisation also promotes regional and international tax cooperation and advocates for Africa’s interests in shaping international tax rules and policies, ensuring that African perspectives and priorities are represented in global tax discussions and decision-making processes.
About UNU-WIDER: The United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER) is a global think tank, research institute and UN agency based in Helsinki, Finland. UNU-WIDER provides economic analysis to promote equitable development and supports capacity building and knowledge sharing through a global network of researchers and institutions.
