The Effects of COVID-19 on Tax Administration in Ethiopia

Abstract

The role of effective tax administration is vital to safeguard healthy business environment andpromote economic growth. Ethiopian tax administration practice has shown improvement forthe last five years, though it has started to be challenged due to COVID-19 outbreak. The aim ofthis study is to examine the effect of the pandemic on tax administration in Ethiopia. Theresearchers have made desk review using data gathered from websites, published articles,reports, and press conference release. The study result showed that before the pandemic, thecountry’s tax administration has shown good progress in the past few years. If the pandemic is tostay for a long time, it has the probable effect of affecting over all public finance structure andwell-being of the economy. To minimize these negative probable effects of the pandemic, thegovernment should take appropriate measures such as improving cash-flow for businessorganizations and re-assess its medium- to longer-term fiscal strategies.