Effectiveness and Economic Impact of Tax Incentives in the SADC ...

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2-12 EFFECTIVENESS AND IMPACT OF TAX INCENTIVES IN THE SADC REGION “extent of distortive government subsidies,” which has a very low weight in the index. Thus, tax considerations are deemed to be unimportant in the GCR rankings, compared to more fundamental determinants of the investment climate. In 1999−2000, the World Bank conducted a survey of more than 10,000 firms of all sizes in 80 countries, obtaining data or respondent’s scores on hundreds of variables covering firm characteristics, investment, and perceptions of the investment climate. 24 The latter category includes taxes and regulations, finance, policy instability, inflation and the exchange rate, corruption, crime, infrastructure, anti-competitive practices, and the judicial system. The most important finding from this data base is that the rankings of business constraints differ greatly by region (and presumably by country as well). In sub-Saharan Africa, the survey covers 15 countries, including 6 SADC members. For this group the category “taxes and regulations” 25 is viewed as a major or moderate concern by just 33 percent of the respondents—the lowest for all reported categories. In comparison, more than 60 percent of the respondents view financing, inflation, corruption, and infrastructure as serious constraints. Surprisingly, the importance of “taxes and regulations” in Africa is also far lower than in other regions, with the exception of East Asia/China. On balance, survey studies consistently show that tax considerations rank far behind other factors as a determinant of investment. But how can this evidence of a distinctly minor role for taxation be reconciled with recent econometric findings that indicate significant tax effects on investment? The main explanation is that econometric tests identify the influence of taxes on investment after controlling for the effects of non-tax factors. Another consideration is that many international investment decisions involve a two-step process. 26 Step one involves an assessment of the fundamental viability of operating in different locations. At this stage, businesses may indeed pay little attention to the tax system, unless it is unusually bad or exceedingly good. Step two is the selection of a particular host country from the shortlist of viable locations. If these alternatives are similar in terms of their fundamentals, then tax considerations can be decisive at this stage. Thus, survey evidence would show that respondents place a low weight on tax factors in the overall decision process, even though tax variables can have a significant effect on the final decisions. CASE STUDIES Case studies provide a third source of empirical information on the determinants of investment. This information is less systematic and less representative than econometric 24 Batra, Kaufman and Stone (2002). 25 This category consists of 8 factors: high taxes; tax administration and regulations; customs, and trade regulations; labor regulations; business registration; environment; foreign exchange regulations; and fire/safety regulations. Among this set, tax issues top the list as potential business constraints, in every region. 26 This observation is from Toft (1996).
TAXATION, INVESTMENT, AND GROWTH 2-13 studies or survey results, but often rich in detail. One of the earliest reviews of fiscal incentives in developing countries (Shah and Toye 1978) set the stage by citing three studies in Mexico, Jamaica, and Pakistan, which showed that most investment decisions were not affected by tax considerations. Another study on Brazil, however, showed that investment in the northeast region did depend critically on tax benefits. Not much has changed since that early review of the case-study literature. Most case studies assign tax considerations an insignificant role (as long as the tax system is reasonably well structured), and emphasize the role of non-tax factors in investment decisions. In some cases, such as Mauritius and Ireland, generous tax incentives have undoubtedly lured investors. And in others, such as Uganda and Indonesia, the elimination of incentives had no effect on the flow of investment—providing real-world “experiments” to prove that selective incentives are not needed if the underlying investment climate is attractive. So case study evidence can be used to support just about any conclusion. 2.4 Lesson for SADC The main lesson for SADC from the empirical literature on determinants of investment is that taxation does affect some investments in some circumstances, but in general it is not a primary consideration for investors. The context matters. In presenting case studies on FDI in Africa, Basu & Srinivasan (2002) clarify this point by classifying investments into four categories: 1. Investment in natural resources 2. Investment triggered by locational advantages 3. Investment triggered by broad-based economic reforms 4. Investment triggered by the provision of specific incentives. Implicit in their analysis is that the fourth group—investment attracted by specific incentives —is the exception rather than the rule. To the extent that taxation does affect investment, it is important to bear in mind that the tax burden can be reduced in two ways: by making the general tax system more attractive, or by offering selective incentives. The empirical literature provides no clear guidance about which approach is preferable. On the one hand, some econometric evidence suggests that carefully targeted incentives are more cost-effective than general tax reductions. On the other hand, some survey results and case studies indicate that the overall tax system is much more important to investors than specific incentives. It is time, then, to focus our attention on the economics of tax incentives as such.
Page 1: TECHNICAL REPORT Effectiveness and
Page 5 and 6: Contents Executive Summary xi 1. In
Page 7 and 8: Contents (continued) ILLUSTRATIONS
Page 9 and 10: Glossary ACT additional company tax
Page 11 and 12: Preface The Scope of Work (SOW) for
Page 13: PREFACE IX Export Development & Inv
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Page 25 and 26: 1. Introduction Why should schemes
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6. Economics of Harmful Tax Competi
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ECONOMICS OF HARMFUL TAX COMPETITIO
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7. Tax Systems and Tax Incentives i
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TAX SYSTEMS AND INCENTIVES IN THE S
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Table 7-5 Elements of Tax Structure
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Table 7-5 (continued) Sheet 3 of 4
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Notes a Mozambique information Coun
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8. Conclusions and Recommendations
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CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 8-3
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R-2 EFFECTIVENESS AND IMPACT OF TAX
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A-2 APPENDIX The present investment
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A-4 APPENDIX Democratic Republic of
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A-6 APPENDIX Government revenue in
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A-8 APPENDIX income tax payable by
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A-10 APPENDIX (though they are obli
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A-12 APPENDIX • • • Asset All
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A-14 APPENDIX also get zero import
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A-16 APPENDIX EPZ measure was motiv
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