Under DFID funding, Crown Agents has been awarded an important and wide-ranging contract to provide technical assistance to the Sierra Leone National Revenue Authority (NRA).
Established in 2002 as a semi-autonomous revenue authority, the NRA is responsible for all customs and tax operations in Sierra Leone. In 2007 the NRA developed a Modernisation Plan aimed at transforming the institution into a more modern and effective vehicle through which to secure vital state revenues.
The reform programme is designed to deliver more efficient and visibly equitable customs and tax administration procedures that are fully compliant with all the benchmarks of international best practice. Through its continuing support programme to NRA, the UK Department for International Development has reinforced its commitment to achieve its overarching goal of poverty alleviation and the reduction of dependency on foreign aid.
Crown Agents will work with NRA and other key stakeholders to implement the following components of the modernisation plan:
Integrated Revenue Management Programme: This focuses on Customs Modernisation, Administrative Reform of Domestic Taxes, and Implementation of a Goods and Services Tax (GST). These involve a review of laws, procedures and structures to bring them in line with International best practice and to improve NRA's revenue collection statistics. This component will involve capacity building in the Large Taxpayer Office (LTO), improving taxpayer audit and compliance management and assisting in the establishment of a new Domestic Taxes Department that will merge GST and Direct Tax operations.
Human Resource and Institutional Development Programme: This is aimed at development of the human and institutional resource base of NRA by equipping it with modern performance management systems and procedures, enhanced management information systems, change management strategies and improved monitoring and evaluation systems throughout the organisation.
Taxpayer Information and Education Programme: This is designed to change the taxpaying culture in Sierra Leone through better general information to the public and by assisting individual taxpayers to better understand their tax obligations. In this way, voluntary compliance amongst the taxpayer community will be enhanced.
Consolidation of the Strategic Management Programme: This focuses on the development of the NRA's Strategic Management capacity and institutional footprint. Integrity enhancement is key to this component.
Crown Agents welcomes this opportunity to help NRA realise its true potential and thereby contribute to the economic growth and development of Sierra Leone. The Company takes pride in its record of working closely with client institutions to maximise human, economic and social potential. We do this by working collaboratively to transfer the skills and ideas, consulting widely with the stakeholders at all stages of the process.
This new contract consolidates our relationship with both NRA and with the Government of Sierra Leone. We will work with both the NRA and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development to ensure the newly implemented GST is viable and robust and that NRA has in place effective compliance management procedures. We believe the GST is the bedrock of the country's fiscal recovery plan. Despite the global recession, working in partnership with NRA we expect to reverse the decline in total tax yield expressed as a percentage of GDP. The downward trend of this key fiscal indicator (in 2006 it fell below 12%) has caused alarm within the donor community and particularly within the IMF. Working closely with the all key stakeholder institutions, we will consolidate and further embed the GST, streamline and make more effective customs operations, and substantially increase the yield deriving from the profit tax that is levied on both corporate entities and individuals.