ECOWAS Regional Tax Policy Dialogue Tax Agreements, Tax Incentives and Sustainable Development in West Africa,DAKAR, SENEGAL November 28 – 30, 2018

Back Ground

The drive to attract Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) and promote international trade has been top on the agenda for many developing countries. This has called for many countries to put in place policies that are geared to make them remain competitive and attractive for FDIs.

Specifically, the Extractive sector in West Africa has been of focus following the fact that most economies in the region rely on commodities to generate revenues for financing development. This has seen governments putting in place policies that are aimed at increasing investments towards that sector. The investment model adopted by players in this sector have been questionable in view of the oligopolistic1 market in which they operate.

Characterised by dominance of few firms, oligopoly markets offer an opportunity for the players/firms to influence the policies and systems put in place to govern their operation. This is often possible as a result of the high probabilities of the players colluding or creating cartels. This has been demonstrated to the extent that some firms have been engaged as advisors in the development of legal frameworks that are meant to govern their operations, subsequently, subjecting the whole process to a bias.

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