Towards sustainable taxation: the ONU’s guidelines

In the document “Financing for sustainable report 2023” the UN has analyzed, apparently with negative results, the situation in which the world economy finds itself. The goal on the basis of which the international organization proposes correctives to the current contraction in the performance of economies and international trade is that of sustainable development.

Among the macro-areas under analysis in the document under review is the fiscal sector.

According to the UN, the financial and economic crises, public debt, as well as the little space given to fiscal policies would have worsened the financial conditions of the generality of countries; therefore, public resources (i.e., taxes paid by taxpayers) would remain the only available tool to be able to support an available development.

The International Institution recalls that an efficient tax system is the basis of the so-called “social contract”, in which taxpayers pay taxes and, correspondingly, governments provide valuable public services and goods. Therefore, an efficient tax policy would result in greater investment in public services, thereby stimulating taxpayer compliance. In order to achieve this result, the UN provides a number of pointers.

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