PATF

The Fiscal Transition Support Program in West Africa, PATF is funded by the European Union (EU) under the 11th European Development Fund (EDF) for the ECOWAS and WAEMU Commissions with the LINPICO SARL-ADAM ŚMITH Consortium as the implementing agency. PATF runs through 2020-2022 and covers the 15 ECOWAS Member States and the Islamic Republic of Mauritania.

This program includes a second contract with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) which addresses international tax issues.

PATF is hosted by the Department of Trade, Customs, and Free Movement for the ECOWAS Commission and by the Department of Macroeconomic Policy and Domestic Tax for the WAEMU Commission.

A joint ECOWAS-WAEMU steering committee has been set up to oversee the PATF implementation.

A technical team has been set up by LINPICO SARL to implement PATF. The team includes:

• Support and Coordination Units (SCUs) set up within each Commission
• A Technical Assistance comprised of three long-term Key Experts:
• One non-key long-term Expert who is responsible for achieving the program’s expected results in Guinea-Bissau;

In addition, there are short-term experts whose workload is estimated at 1 290 man-days over the program period.

^{11 EDF National Indicative Programme}

Total cost: 10 million euros

16 ECOWAS Member States and Mauritania; about 400 million inhabitants

To support the implementation of Fiscal Transition Programs in West Africa, following the implementation of regional trade liberalization policies consolidated by the development of the Customs union, the application of the common external tariff (CET) and the Economic partnership agreement (EPA)

• To improve the management of domestic taxation and ensure better tax coordination within the ECOWAS and WAEMU region;
• To strengthen the regional fight against fraud, tax evasion, illicit financial flows, and corruption;
• To strengthen the coordination and institutional capacity of WAEMU, ECOWAS, and Member States in facilitating the implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of the new fiscal transition program
• To strengthen advocacy and analysis by the Civil society, private sector, and academia and to stimulate public debate on domestic tax;
• To bring specific expertise to Guinea Bissau and Liberia in implementing VAT according to the ECOWAS directive; to Nigeria for VAT harmonization and management.

The organizational framework combines the resourcefulness of a steering committee carrying out high-level monitoring of the program, a technical assistance secretariat providing overall operational support and coordination and monitoring of activities, a unit of support and coordination (SCU) appointed within each ECOWAS Member State, and the WAEMU commissions and designated country-level bodies.

In each member state, the organizational framework includes a national PATF support and evaluation committee, ministerial focal points, and other high-level stakeholders, including representatives from the private sector, academia, and civil society who also serve as focal points.

PATF implementation relies on a management structure and the effective use of available resources within the ECOWAS and UEMOA Commissions and within each ECOWAS member state and Mauritania.

The technical assistance (PATF-TA) seeks to promote ownership of the budget transition reforms by relevant stakeholders, real-time transfer of knowledge, skills, and expertise to institutional frameworks and staff of beneficiary Member States (MS), as well as the development of appropriate operational and management tools to ensure the sustainability of the reforms.

In addition, the PATF-TA pays special attention to the dissemination of the results achieved under this program, in accordance with the latest guidelines on technical cooperation and visibility of the projects funded by the European Union.

National authorities are encouraged to involve all relevant departments and stakeholders in the PATF for the efficient implementation of the program.

LINPICO TA and the OECD are the two implementing agencies for the PATF. LINPICO TA is responsible for Outcomes 1 and 3 and OECD for Outcome 2. PATF governance bodies are:

The Steering Committee, which is PATF’s highest authority, was created by Decision No. 026/2021/PCOM dated February 24, 2021. The Steering committee is jointly chaired by the two Commissioners in charge of the tax affairs department within WAEMU and ECOWAS;

• The Support and Coordination Units (SCU) are PATF’s second governance body, represented in both the WAEMU and ECOWAS Commissions. These units are represented in WAEMU by the Directorate of Public Finance and Domestic Tax (DPFDT) and in ECOWAS by the Directorate of Customs Union and Tax. Both Directors are the PATF Coordinators and the Directorate Executives are the members of the SCUs within WAEMU and ECOWAS;
• The Country Focal Points are the third governance body of the PATF. The focal points were appointed by the Minister of Finance of the beneficiary States at the invitation of the President of the ECOWAS Commission. Each country has 03 representatives, including one from the Directorate General of Tax, one from the Directorate General of Customs, and one from the Tax Policy Committee