























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 pathway to a just and youth-friendly tax regime is clear: policies must keep pace with the realities of young entrepreneurs, formal and informal, urban and rural alike. Only through ongoing reform, robust support systems, and genuine participatory tax justice can Uganda unlock the full power of its youth as architects of a more prosperous future.
Delegates at the 3rd Session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC3) continued working toward the development of a UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation. Friday’s discussions focused on Article 11 on capacity-building and technical assistance, the digitalization of tax administration, sustainability and funding, roles of the Secretariat and COP, and updates from Workstream II on cross-border services.
Download Full Policy
For youth participants, we see a distinct perspective, emphasizing that the current tax system often leaves Global South countries underfunded, limiting investments in youth employment, education, and digital access. We continue to highlight that failing to adapt taxation to modern digital economies risks perpetuating inequalities: large digital corporations operating in developing countries can avoid paying fair shares, while young entrepreneurs face regulatory burdens that stifle innovation. Civil society representatives reinforced these points, calling for tax rules that account for historical disparities between wealthy and developing nations. Discussions reflected a tension between protecting traditional national revenue sources and reforming systems to ensure equitable contributions from globalized business models.
This November, young people from across the world come together to explore an urgent connection that few are talking about: how the UN Climate Conference (COP 30) in Belém and the UN negotiations for a Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation in Nairobi are part of the same story.