Forestry Taxation in Africa: The Case of Liberia
Electronic Access:
Free Download. Use the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this PDF file
Summary:
Countries generally tax the forestry sector to achieve the twin objectives of revenue maximization and sustainability of logging levels. In an ideal world of perfect markets and information, auctions would be the best instrument to determine the price of extraction rights. However, a number of factors-including a lack of information on the forest resources under consideration, uncertainties as to the stability of property rights over time, and a lack of access to credit-have limited the use of auctions so far, particularly in low-income countries. To establish transparency of the forestry sector's financial flows, this paper discusses a radical simplification of Liberia's current timber tax structure, including a proposal to reduce the sector's current tax system to two instruments, an area tax and an export tax.
Series:
Working Paper No. 2005/156
Subject:
Agroindustries Economic sectors Environment Exports Forestry tax International trade Natural resources Tariffs Tax incentives Taxes
English
Publication Date:
August 1, 2005
ISBN/ISSN:
9781451861754/1018-5941
Stock No:
WPIEA2005156
Pages:
27
Please address any questions about this title to publications@imf.org