Over the past three decades, Anglophone African states have embarked on the most far-reaching tax-administration overhaul
attempted anywhere in the developing world. Between 1991 and 2011, 16 of the 19 countries in the region created semi-autonomous
revenue authorities (SARAs), introduced value-added tax (VAT), and adopted risk-based compliance tools, digital filing, and large-
taxpayer units in an effort to widen the tax base, curb evasion, and strengthen fiscal contracts with citizens. Drawing on IMF, ATAF,
and national revenue authority data, this paper evaluates the cumulative impact of these reforms on revenue performance,
governance, and state capacity. While the creation of SARAs raised the average tax-to-GDP ratio by 2.5–3.2 percentage points and
improved the “Weberian” institutional character of tax collection, gains have plateaued since 2015. Persistent weaknesses include
fragmented VAT and income-tax administration, weak small- and medium-enterprise compliance, and high collection costs
(averaging 3.4 % of revenue, roughly triple the OECD median). Analysis of eight countries (Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra
Leone, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia) shows that modernization has been most effective where three conditions align: (i) sustained
political commitment to shield SARAs from political interference; (ii) investment in end-to-end digital platforms that integrate customs
and domestic tax systems; and (iii) professionalization of staff through transnational networks and competitive remuneration.
Conversely, reforms have stalled where pre-existing social contracts remain extractive, business-state relations allow elite capture,
and donor-funded systems are not adapted to local administrative realities. The paper concludes that future modernization must
move beyond organizational restructuring toward data-driven compliance strategies, segmented taxpayer services, and whole-of-
government digital ecosystems. Without these shifts, Anglophone Africa risks remaining in a “middle-technology trap,” where early
gains from autonomy and VAT cannot be extended to the informal sector or to sub-national taxes critical for the Sustainable
Development Goals.