AFCFTA secretary general, others for EY tax summit

The Secretary General of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA), Wamkele Mene, will be leading other notable speakers and panelists to this year’s EY Africa Tax Summit, starting from October 25-28, 2021 in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The four-day virtual event with the theme ‘Beyond COVID-19: Resetting the Africa Tax and Trade Agenda’, promises to be very interactive and engaging and will unpack among others, key topics on the tax issues and what it means for business in Africa.

Speaking about the Summit, EY Africa Tax Leader, Larry Eyinla, disclosed that this year’s event will be discussing key topics including but not limited to trade, recovery and supply chain in the reset; trust, the global tax framework and voluntary compliance and new horizons for tax function, looking at sustainability, digitization and technology.

He also noted that confirmed speakers and panelists are drawn from business executives, government officials and policy makers, NGOs and academia, adding that they would be sharing knowledge and expertise on pressing challenges as well as exciting opportunities on the continent.

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On why tax function needs a revamp, Larry said the digital revolution has taken the globe by storm with no turning back, noting that the increasing changes and legislative demands mean that tax function too have not been spared however technological investment must be accelerated to keep up.

“We have seen many governments investing in their technological infrastructure and businesses gradually leveraging technological advancements in a bid to remain competitive. With tax authorities demanding more transparency and information to determine corporate tax liability in real time—businesses need to stay ahead of the curve to remain tax compliant”, he stated.

Speakers and panelists already confirmed for the Summit include Wamkele Mene, Secretary General of AFCFTA, Varsha Singh, Senior Advisor to the Executive Secretary of the African Tax Administration Forum (ATAF) and Francis Anatogu, Senior Special Assistant to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Others are Ana-Celia Mendes, Tax Director Africa and the Middle East, Unilever as well as Crispian Olver, Chairman, SA Presidential Climate Change Commission, among others.