Strategic Taxation: Fiscal Capacity and Accountability in African States

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Lucy E. S. Martin (Assistant Professor, Assistant Professor, Univeristy of North Carolina, Chapel Hill)

Strategic Taxation

Fiscal Capacity and Accountability in African States

Lucy E. S. Martin (Assistant Professor, Assistant Professor, Univeristy of North Carolina, Chapel Hill)

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English

Oxford University Press Inc
03 June 2023

Political science & theory; Comparative politics; Geopolitics; Public finance

Across the developing world, governments still lack the fiscal capacity to fund critical public goods, alleviate poverty, and invest in economic development. Yet, we know little about how to effectively build strong states in these settings. This book develops and tests a new theory to explain why fiscal capacity in African states is low. Drawing on work in psychology and behavioral economics, this book argues that taxation leads citizens to demand more from leaders as they seek to recover lost income from taxation. It then argues that governments' willingness to tax will depend on the extent to which they can satisfy citizens' demands while maintaining rent extraction. Rent-seeking leaders of low-capacity states will strategically underinvest in fiscal capacity in order to avoid the higher demands they face under taxation. Contrary to many existing theories, Martin shows that this can actually lead to lower taxation in democracies compared to autocracies, as citizen accountability demands pose a bigger threat to rulers. The book uses multiple empirical approaches to test the theory. Laboratory experiments in Uganda and Ghana, combined with Afrobarometer data, demonstrate that taxation increases citizens' demands on leaders. Global cross-national panel data show that democracy can actually lead to lower taxation in low-capacity states. When taxation is sustainable, however, it is associated with better governance. Case studies in Uganda, based on the author's own fieldwork and original survey data, provide additional support for the theory.

These findings provide new framework for understanding the challenges to building state capacity, especially fiscal capacity, in modern developing countries.

By: Lucy E. S. Martin (Assistant Professor Assistant Professor Univeristy of North Carolina Chapel Hill)
Imprint: Oxford University Press Inc
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 160mm, Width: 237mm, Spine: 14mm
Weight: 345g
ISBN: 9780197672648
ISBN 10: 0197672647
Pages: 232
Publication Date: 03 June 2023
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

1. Introduction 2. Understanding Fiscal Capacity 3. How Taxation Increases Accountability Demands Appendix 4. A Model of Taxation and Accountability 5. Evidence that Taxation Increases Accountability Demands 6. Taxation, Democracy, and Accountability 7. Understanding Taxation in Uganda 8. Conclusion

Lucy Martin is Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Her research focuses on the ways in which taxation affects statebuilding and state-society relations in modern developing countries. She has published in the American Journal of Political Science, the Journal of Politics, Political Behavior, the Review of International Organizations, and the Journal of Experimental Political Science.