Minister of Finance to Chair OECD Ministerial Round Table on Developing Countries & International Taxation

Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Nigel Clarke, DPhil, MP has accepted an invitation from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (“OECD”) to Chair a virtual Ministerial Round Table on Developing Countries and International Taxation on November 10th, 2021.

The Round Table is being hosted at a time when the global tax landscape is evolving quickly, particularly as developing countries are experiencing fiscal constraints due to the global pandemic and there is therefore an urgency to ensure that developing countries benefit from new opportunities including international tax matters.

Jamaica, as a member of the 141 strong OECD/ G20 Inclusive Framework, joined with 136 fellow members to support the historic agreement to implement a fairer global tax system allowing for allocation of the taxing rights to market jurisdictions on the profits of multinationals across the globe, as well as ensuring that multinationals pay a minimum of 15 percent tax on profits earned from their global activity.

Minster Clarke noted, “Whilst the participation of developing countries, has been integral to the Inclusive Framework, our engagement has been more technical than political. I see the Round Table as an opportunity to generate the necessary political attention so that we can benefit fully from international tax discussions.”

The Ministerial Round Table will have a threefold objective. First, to set a high-level political agenda on the needs and priorities of developing countries in international taxation to feed into and inform the ongoing international tax dialogue, including with respect to the implementation of the Two-Pillar Solution. Second, to provide feedback on the main findings and recommendations in the above-mentioned OECD report on developing countries’ participation in the Inclusive Framework. Third, to reflect on how the Inclusive Framework could evolve to further support domestic resource mobilisation in developing countries in the COVID-19 era and beyond.

In his capacity of Chairman of the OECD Ministerial Roundtable, Minister Clarke invited Ministers representing countries from various regions, and at different levels of development, including Barbados, Honduras, Egypt, Georgia, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, Jordan, Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand to participate in the Roundtable.