







For young people across Africa and the world, these negotiations represent more than just policy debates. They offer an unprecedented opportunity to shape an economic future focused on intergenerational equity, where every resource counts, and where fiscal justice becomes a tool for equality, innovation, and opportunity.
n 2015, the Mbeki Panel on Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) unveiled a truth that shook the continent: Africa was losing over $50 billion every year through illicit financial flows, all these are resources that could have transformed education, health, and infrastructure. Reports by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), UNCTAD and TJNA in recent years have underscored that these amounts are even higher in 2025. The report did more than expose a crisis; it offered a roadmap for reclaiming Africa’s wealth and strengthening domestic resource mobilization.
A decade later, that call for action still resonates, but it now meets a generation ready to act. The Youth for Tax Justice Network (YTJN) represents this renewed energy. It demonstrates the work young people are doing to advance the Mbeki Report’s vision through advocacy, policy dialogue, and youth-led campaigns that push for greater transparency, fair taxation, and accountability across Africa and beyond.
The Youth for Tax Justice Network (YTJN) stands in solidarity with young people across Kenya who gathered peacefully on June 25 to mark one year since the tragic events of June 2024, and
to continue calling for justice, good governance and economic accountability.
A key discussion point was the looming public debt crisis, driven more by domestic borrowing than external sources. This inward borrowing approach has the unintended effect of shrinking fiscal space and crowding out essential public services.
We write to you as the Youth for Tax Justice Network (YTJN), a global, youth-led coalition advocating for inclusive and equitable
tax systems that serve the needs of both present and future generations across Africa and Europe. As the Intergovernmental
Negotiating Committee deliberates on the United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation in New York,
we urge you to recognize this moment for what it is: a generational turning point.
March 2024 was momentous in our advancement toward youth participation in creating progressive tax systems. Hon Stephen George…