Informal taxation in Sierra Leone
Magnitudes, perceptions and implications
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6024316 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Vanessa Van Den Boogaard (0000-0003-4327-2930), Wilson Prichard (0000-0002-9855-6538), Samuel Jibao |
| Year | 2019 |
| Volume | 118 |
| Issue | 471 |
| Pages | 259-284 |
| Publication date | 2019-04-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | African Affairs (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0001-9909 • E-ISSN: 1468-2621 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/afraf/ady049 |
| OpenAlex | W2901129641 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 18 |
In low-income countries, citizens often pay ‘taxes’ that differ substantially from what is required by statute. These non-statutory taxes are central to financing both local public goods and maintaining informal governance institutions. This study captures the incidence of informal taxation and taxpayer perspectives on these payments. We find, first, that informal taxes are a prevalent reality within areas of weak formal statehood in Sierra Leone, with households paying an equal number of informal and formal taxes. Second, we find positive taxpayer perceptions of the fairness of informal taxes relative to formal taxes, despite informal taxes being regressive in their distribution. We explain this by the fact that taxpayers are more likely to trust the actor levying these payments and are more likely to believe that they will be used to deliver benefits to the community.
Business · Corporate governance · Development economics · Economic growth · Economics · Informal sector · Labour economics · Microeconomics · Payment · Perception · Political science · Public economics · Public finance · Public good · Sierra leone · Statute · Statutory law · Taxpayer · Finance · Fiscal Policy and Economic Growth · Law · Local Government Finance and Decentralization · Taxation and Compliance Studies
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Tax reform coalitions for urban development
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Taxing Informality
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Social protection, community participation and state‐citizen relations
Formalization and its Discontents
Co‐financing community‐driven development through informal taxation
Taxation and Social Intermediaries
Political trust and informal traders in African cities
A tax by any other name? Conceptions of taxation and implications for research
When Governments Deliver
Contested practices of trade and taxation
| Unique citing works | 18 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 3.6 |
| Citation span | 2021 - 2025 (5) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 17 |