2nd Tax Transparency Conference

Tax avoidance and evasion is a global problem which deprives governments and society as a whole of the substantial revenue highly needed to finance public goods. As stated by the OECD, tax transparency is a key policy tool to tackle tax evasion and avoidance. As a result, several tax transparency initiatives have been launched. Beyond policymakers also investors are increasingly demanding more disclosure of tax information. This is in line with the overall focus of shareholders on company’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives since tax represents an increasingly important component of a company’s ESG agenda. Speakers from academia, industry, and government will come together to discuss the benefits and limits of existing tax transparency initiatives and how the future of tax transparency will look like.

I am applying for funding needed to support the organization of the 2nd tax transparency conference on December 3, 2024. The event will be hybrid and will take place on campus at NHH Norwegian School of Economics and online via zoom. Overall, the topic of this conference will be about tax transparency as an effective tool to reduce tax avoidance and evasion. Tax avoidance and evasion is a global problem which deprives governments and society as a whole of the substantial revenue highly needed to finance public spending. As stated by the OECD, tax transparency is a key policy tool to tackle tax evasion and avoidance. As a result, several tax transparency initiatives have been launched. Beyond policymakers also investors are increasingly demanding more disclosure of tax information. This is inline with the overall focus of shareholders on company’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives since tax represents an increasingly important component of a company’s ESG agenda. The payment of taxes is a powerful indicator of the financial impact a company has on society and recent shareholders’ voting behavior demonstrated the necessity of companies to provide more information on their tax payments and tax risk profile.