Dienstag, 24. Februar 2015, 09:00 - 18:00 iCal

Tax Justice to Promote Social Justice

Research on Taxes for Development

University of Vienna - Sky Lounge
Oskar-Morgenstern-Platz 1, 1090 Wien

Tagung, Konferenz, Kongress, Symposium


Conference hosted by the Vienna Institute for International Dialogue and Cooperation (VIDC) and the Department of Development Studies (IE) – University of Vienna

The Global Alliance For Tax Justice (GATJ) and the European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI) are pleased to invite you to join us for an important conference to build closer cooperation between professional researchers and tax justice activists:

BACKGROUND

Taxation plays an important role for the mobilization of public domestic revenues and will be one of the hot topics at the United Nation’s Financing for Development Conference in Addis Ababa in July 2015. Tax policies can be designed to curb inequalities, but need to be complemented by redistributive budget policies. Tax revenues play an important role in funding collective public goods in the form of social protection benefits and public services such as healthcare and education. Tax systems can also enhance democratic governance by making governments more accountable to their tax-paying citizens.

Despite the importance of tax for financing sustainable development and redistributing wealth, many countries face challenges in their efforts to increase their tax revenues. The reasons on the domestic level include tax administrations’ capacity problems, and the undercutting of tax revenues when numerous tax incentives and exemptions are given to corporations and wealthy individuals. On the international level, tax avoidance and evasion are enabled by an outdated international tax architecture that is based on bilateral tax agreements and is unsuitable for the globalized economy of the 21st century, as well as an international system of tax havens and secrecy jurisdictions.

Multinational corporations, in particular, profit from declining corporate tax rates and tax incentives, and exploit existing loopholes in and between national legislations. Initiatives from the G20 and the OECD are currently being developed to address some of these problems. But critics say these reforms will not go deep enough, leaving untouched the root causes of rising illicit flows, tax evasion and avoidance.

This Tax Justice to Promote Social Justice conference brings together experienced (development) researchers and tax justice campaigners to exchange views on the most effective ways forward to share findings for policy change, public education and mobilization. Participation in this conference is free of charge.

PROGRAM

Keynote: Reinventing Tax Justice to Achieve Social Justice - Current Challenges, Future Opportunities

Krishen Mehta (Senior Global Justice Fellow, Yale University & Senior Advisor, Tax Justice Network), USA

PANEL1: Taxing Corporations – Fair Share versus Race to the Bottom Approaches

Mick Moore (Professorial Fellow, Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex & Chief Executive Officer, International Centre for Tax and Development), UK - tbc

Alvin Mosioma (Executive Director, Tax Justice Network Africa), Kenya

PANEL 2: Let There be Light! A Case for Transparency

Moran Harari (Researcher, Tax Justice Network & TJN Israel), Israel

Zorka Milin (Legal Advisor, Global Witness), USA

PANEL 3: Tax and Budget Policies to End Inequality

Patricia Miranda (Fundacion Jubileo Bolivia), Bolivia

Margit Schratzenstaller (Researcher, Austrian Institute of Economic Research), Austria

Wrap Up Discussion: The Way to Addis - Taxes as a Key Source for Domestic Revenue and Sustainable Development

Dereje Alemayehu, Chair Coordination Committee, Global Alliance for Tax Justice

Lisa Baud, President, European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI)

John Christensen, Director, Tax Justice Network

Conference Participants

Registration required! Please contact Martina Neuwirth (neuwirth@vidc.org) for registration and more information.

Zur Webseite der Veranstaltung


Veranstalter

VIDC


Um Anmeldung wird gebeten


Kontakt

irène hochauer-kpoda
VIDC-Wiener Institut
Projekt/Eventmanagement
01713359469
hochauer-kpoda@vidc.org