outcome harvesting evaluation report aadk august...
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OutcomeHarvestingEvaluation
ActionAidDenmarkTaxJusticeProgrammeEvaluationReport
August2017
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Acknowledgements
I wish to thank all the change agents of the Tax Justice programme who participated in thisevaluation.Ireallyappreciatetheireffortandcommitmenttoformulatetheiroutcomesinaveryshort timeframe. I am especially grateful to Helene Bach for her amazing coordination of thisevaluationfromthesideofAADK.IalsoreallyappreciatedherenthusiasmanddedicationtofindtherightmonitoringandevaluationtoolsthatenableAADKtodemonstratetheresultsoftheTaxJusticeprogramme.
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Tableofcontent
Introductionandevaluationdesign 5
2. TheActionAidTaxJusticeProgramme 53. Usersanduses 64. Evaluationquestions 65. ScopeoftheEvaluation 66. Abouttheevaluator 7
Theevaluationprocess 8
1. AboutOutcomeHarvesting 82. Datacollection 93. Analysisandinterpretation: 104. Substantiation 115. Limitationsoftheevaluation 12
Findingsoftheevaluation 13
1. Generalfindings 13Location 13Time 14Significance 14Unintendedoutcomes 152. Answerstoevaluationquestions 16InwhichsocialactorsisActionAidinfluencingchange? 16TowhatextenddotheoutcomesrepresentpatternsofprogresstowardsthestrategicobjectivesoftheTaxJusticeprogramme? 18HowdidtheTaxJusticeProgrammecontributetotheoutcomesthroughitsprogrammemodalities(Training4Change,TaxAdvisor,supporttogovernanceprogramming,GlobalTaxCampaign,InspiratorandActivista)? 20TowhatextentdotheoutcomesachievedbyAADKshowthattheworkofAADKonTaxJusticeislocallyrooted? 25Towhatextentdotheoutcomesshowlinkagesbetweenthelocal,national,regionalandgloballevelofadvocacy? 27Towhatextentdotheoutcomesshowalinkbetweenprogressivetaxationandimprovedsocialservices? 30
Overallconclusions: 33
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ANNEXES:ANNEX1:OutcomesoftheTaxJusticeProgrammeANNEX2:OutcomeformatANNEX3:OverviewofdocumentsconsultedANNEX4:ParticipantsoftheOutcomeHarvestingworkshopANNEX5:Tableofsubstantiators
ListoffiguresFigure1Overviewofnumberofoutcomespercountry____________________________________________13Figure2Numberofoutcomesperyear ________________________________________________________14Figure3Numberofoutcomespersignificancelevel______________________________________________15Figure4Numberofoutcomespersocialactor___________________________________________________17Figure5Numberofoutcomesperobjective ____________________________________________________19Figure6Numberofoutcomesperobjectiveandactor ____________________________________________20Figure7Numberofoutcomesperprogrammemodality___________________________________________21Figure8Numberofoutcomesperpercentageofcontribution______________________________________23Figure9Numberoflocallyrootedoutcomes____________________________________________________26Figure10Percentageofoutcomesperchangelevel______________________________________________27Figure11Numberofoutcomesforimprovedsocialservicesandprogressivetaxation___________________30
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Introductionandevaluationdesign
2. TheActionAidTaxJusticeProgrammeTheprogrammaticfocusofActionAidDenmark(AADK)isongoodgovernance,withtwointerlinkedoverall programme objectives: 1. Securing improvement in the quality, equity and genderresponsiveness of public services for people living in poverty; 2. Securing fair redistribution ofresourcesthroughtaxation.In2010,AADKjoinedtheActionAidFederationandinlate2014,AADKwasdelegatedtheresponsibilityforcoordinationandlearningrelatedtoallgovernanceworkinthefederation.ThisdelegationisreferredtoastheDemocraticGovernanceDelegation.AkeyfocusofAADKhasbeentofurtherintegratetheworkonaccesstopublicservicesandtaxjustice,aswellasintegrating thevariousactivitieson tax justice intoa common tax justiceprogramme. Since2012,ActionAidDenmark(AADK)hasbeenengagedintaxjusticeactivitiesatnationalandgloballevel.Inthefirstyears,substantialresourceswerespentonbuildingupcapacitiesandknowledgeinthefieldoftaxjusticeandsince2014,theTaxJusticeactivitiesareincreasinglyshowingresults.AADKprovidedprogrammesupportandcapacitydevelopmentto theAADKpartnershipcountries,andbroadercivilsocietypartners.Summingup,AADKhassupportedthetaxjusticeprogrammeinthefollowingways:
• Programmesupporttopartnershipcountries,entailingfinancialandtechnicalassistanceongovernanceandtax
• Support to the ActionAid International (AAI) Global Tax Campaign to undertake globalresearchandadvocacy
• SupporttoActionAid’sglobalyouthnetwork,Activista• AADKownresearchandpolicyworkfocusingonaDanishandEuropeanpolicycontext,e.g.
onDoubleTaxationTreaties(DTT)andresponsiblecorporatebehaviour• LeadontheDemocraticGovernanceDelegationoftheAA(ActionAid)Federation,including
cross-countrylearningaroundprogressivetaxation
AADKintegratedcapacitybuildingmodalitiesconsistingof:• People4Change(P4C):facilitatingface-to-facementoringandcapacitydevelopmentthrough
placementofInspirators(upto9months)andlong-termtechnicalAdvisorswithpartnersorActionAidoffices
• TheGlobalPlatformsareaglobalnetworkofyoutheducationalcentresprovidingtrainingandfacilitatingyouthengagement(Training4Change)
• TCDCistheAADKtrainingCentreforDevelopmentCooperationinTanzaniaprovingtrainingforAAstaffandpartnersone.g.governanceandtax(Training4Change).From2012to2016,357peopleweretrainedontaxjusticeatTCDC.
In2016,oneTaxAdvisorwasplacedinMozambique,oneinTanzaniaandoneinZambia.From2013to2015,aTaxAdvisorwasplacedinUganda.Inaddition,oneTaxInspiratorwasplacedinUgandafromMay2015toFebruary2016andoneinTanzaniafromNovember2016toJuly2016.TheActionAidInternationalmonitoringandevaluation(M&E)systemcaptureswelltheachievementsrelated to access to public services, where AADK has valid data documenting that, since 2012,approximately 2,100,000 people living in poverty got access to improved public services in the 9
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partnershipcountriesthatAADKsupported.Thisworkistakingitspointofdepartureattheverylocallevel,mobilisingcommunitiestodemandqualitypublicservices,linkingittotaxthroughnationalleveladvocacyandpolicywork.TheexistingAAGlobalMonitoringSystemandindicatorsontaxjusticearenot fully suited to capture policy processes and changes in complex settings and thereforeachievementsrelatedtoredistributionandtaxjusticearenotequallywellcapturedanddocumented.As a response to this, AADK decided to undertake an Outcome Harvesting Evaluation aimed atdocumentingresultsofthetaxjusticeactivities.AADKalsointendstointroduceOutcomeHarvestingasamethodintheM&EsystemofAADKandAA.This reportwill startbyexplainingtheevaluationdesignandtheevaluationapproach.Thiswillbefollowedbythefindingsoftheevaluationandtheoverallconclusions.
3. UsersandusesTheAADKleadershipteam,theDemocraticGovernanceteam,aswellastherelevantcountryofficesandAAIunitswishtogetabetterunderstandingoftheresultsoftheTaxJusticeProgrammeandtheapproach/combinationofprogrammemodalitiesthatcontributedtotheseresults.Theywillusetheevaluationfindingstoadjustfutureprogrammedesignandapproach.Moreinspecific,theywillusethefindingstointegratethedifferentactivitiesofActionAidonTaxJusticeintoacoherentprogramme.TheAADKM&Eunit(AccountabilityUnit)willusetheOutcomeHarvestingEvaluationtoinformtheM&Eframeforthenextphaseofthegovernanceprogramme.Inaddition,theywillusethefindingstosupport their fundingapplicationtoDanida.Furthermore, theywillusethecapacity inapplyingOutcome Harvesting that they will gain during the evaluation process, to integrate OutcomeHarvestingintothemonitoringsystemofAADK.
4. Evaluationquestions1. InwhichsocialactorsisActionAidinfluencingchange?2. Towhatextentdotheoutcomesrepresentpatternsofprogresstowardsthestrategicobjectives
oftheTaxJusticeprogramme?3. How did the Tax Justice programme contribute to the outcomes through its programme
modalities (Training4Change, Tax Advisor, support to governance programme, Global TaxCampaign,InspiratorandActivista)?
4. TowhatextentdotheoutcomesachievedbyAADKshowthattheworkofAADKonTaxJusticeislocallyrooted?
5. Towhatextentdotheoutcomesshowlinkagesbetweenthelocal,national,regionalandgloballevelofadvocacy?
6. Towhatextentdotheoutcomesshowalinkbetweenprogressivetaxationandimprovedsocialservices?
5. ScopeoftheEvaluationIn2016,AADKprovidedprogrammesupportto8partnershipcountries(Nicaraguawasphasedoutin2015).Notallpartnershipcountriesimplementtaxrelatedactivities,anditwasdecidedtofocustheOutcomeHarvestingEvaluationonUganda(AAU),Zambia(AAZ),Mozambique(AAMoz)andTanzania(AATZ),aswellasresearchandadvocacyrelatedactivities inDenmarkandthroughtheGlobalTaxCampaign.
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ThisOutcomeHarvestingEvaluationtookplacebetweenFebruary2017andMay2017.TheevaluationsoughttoidentifytheoutcomesthatoccurredbetweenJanuary2014toDecember2016.ActionAidDenmarkcontractedtheevaluator,GoeleScheers, tocarryoutthisOutcomeHarvestingevaluation. The evaluator was assisted by Helene Bach, PME Coordinator, who coordinated theevaluationwithinAADK.
6. AbouttheevaluatorGoeleScheersisanindependent,internationalconsultant,withafocusonmonitoringandevaluationin complex settings. She supported a range of organisations and networks across the world indeveloping and improving their Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (PM&E) systems. Goele isparticularlyspecialisedinOutcomeMappingandOutcomeHarvestingandhasmorethan10yearsofexperienceinusingthesemethods.Priortobecominganindependentconsultant,shewasworkingat‘The Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC)’. As the Coordinator forPlanning,Monitoring,Evaluationand Learning she setupanetwork-widePM&E systembasedonOutcomeMappingandOutcomeHarvesting.SheholdsaMasterin‘InterculturalWorkandConflictManagement’, a Master in International studies, a bachelor in Social Work and a bachelor inPsychology.Seewww.goelescheers.beformoreinformation.Forquestionsaboutthisevaluation,[email protected]
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Theevaluationprocess ThischapterwillexplainhowOutcomeHarvesting,theevaluationapproach,wasusedintoevaluatetheresultsofActionAid’sTaxJusticeprogramme.
1. AboutOutcomeHarvestingOutcomeHarvestingisautilisation-focused,participatorytoolthatenablesevaluators,grantmakers,and programmemanagers to identify, formulate, verify, andmake sense of outcomes they haveinfluencedwhenrelationshipsofcause-effectarenotalwaysknown.Unlikemostotherevaluationmethods, Outcome Harvesting does not measure progress towards predetermined outcomes orobjectives,butrathercollectsevidenceofwhathasbeenachieved,andworksbackwardtodeterminewhetherandhowtheprojectorinterventioncontributedtothechange1.
TheOutcomeHarvestingapproachconsistsofsixsteps:
1. Designtheharvest�2. Reviewdocumentationanddraftoutcomes�3. Engagewithchangeagents2�4. Substantiate�5. Analyse&interpret�6. Supporttheuseoffindings�
OutcomeHarvestingfocusesonoutcomesdefinedasthechangesinbehaviour,practices,relationshipsandactionsofactorsthattheTaxJusticeprogrammehasinfluenced3
.Inthatsense,theactivitiesandoutputsoftheTaxJusticeprogrammedonotcountasoutcomesbecausetheyareunderActionAid’scontrolanddonotshowtheeffectsoftheprogramme’sefforts.Atypicalexampleistheattendanceofparticipantsatatrainingmeeting,whichisnotanoutcomebutanoutput,ittellssomethingabouttheprocess,goodorserviceproducedbythenetwork.OutcomeHarvestingfocusesonthepotentialeffectsofsuchatrainingeventatthelevelofthechangeofbehaviourorpracticeoftherespectiveparticipants.
Outcomesgenerallytaketimetoemergeandsomeactivitiesmayneverleadtoanoutcome.Often,activitieswillcontributeindirectlyandpartiallytooneormoreoutcomes.OutcomeHarvestingseekstoavoidassessingresultsthroughalinear,cause-effectmind-set.Instead,itseekstoidentifycausalityin theactivitiesoroutputsof theTax Justiceprogrammethatcontributed inasmallor largeway,directlyorindirectly,andintentionallyornottotheoutcomes.Inaddition,OutcomeHarvestingdoesnotlimitassessmenttopredefinedresults,butalsoaimstocaptureunexpectedresults.Oneofthevaluesofoutcomesisthattheyrevealaprocessofchange.Thus,someoutcomesgeneratedbytheTaxJusticeprogrammemayberelativelyminororpreliminarycomparedtoothers.Thatisnot
1Formore informationabouttheOutcomeHarvestingmethod,seeWilson-Grau,R.,Britt,H.,OutcomeHarvesting,FordFoundation,20132Achangeagentisanindividualororganisationthatinfluencesanoutcome.�
3OutcomeHarvestingisbasedonOutcomeMappingandusesthesamedefinitionofoutcomes.SeeSarahEarl,FredCarden,and Terry Smutylo, Outcome mapping: building learning and reflection into development programs, IDRC, 2001. Seehttp://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-26586-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html.
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aproblembecausetheimportanceofanoutcomeisusuallyitsrelationshiptootheroutcomes.Forexample,aMinistryofFinancehastorecognisethevalueofprogressivetaxationbeforeitwillchangeitspoliciesaroundtheissue.
2. DatacollectionDuringanOutcomeHarvestingevaluation,data iscollectedthroughadocumentreviewaswellasthroughengagementwiththechangeagents.a)Document review:Theevaluator reviewedallprogress reports, case studiesanddonor reportsprovidedbyAADK.Due to the timingof theharvestworkshop, part of thedocument reviewwasfinalisedaftertheworkshopandcomplementedtheoutcomesdefinedbythechangeagents.Forafulloverviewofdocumentsconsultedandthenumberofpotentialoutcomesidentifiedfromthesedocuments,seeANNEX3:Overviewofdocumentsconsulted.b)Engagementwithchangeagents:ThechangeagentsoftheTaxJusticeProgrammeinvolvedinthisevaluation were staff from the AA offices, two Advisors and partners from Uganda, Tanzania,Mozambique,ZambiaandDenmark,aswellasstafffromtheGlobalTaxCampaign.AnOutcomeHarvestingworkshopwasorganisedfrom1-2March2017inCopenhagen,Denmark.Infollow-up to thisworkshop, the evaluator engagedwith the change agents via e-mail and googledocuments to fine-tune the outcomes. For a list of the participants in theworkshop, please see:ANNEX4ParticipantsoftheOutcomeHarvestingworkshop.
Duringthefirstmorningoftheworkshop,anintroductiontothe Outcome Harvesting methodology was given to thechangeagentsaswellasinterestedstafffromtheAADKoffice.Duringtherestoftheworkshop,theevaluatorsupportedthechangeagentsinharvestingtheiroutcomes.Theparticipantsreflected in groups per country on the behavioural changesthatwereobservedduringtheevaluationperiod.Afterwards,they repeated this process in cross-country groups.Participants shared, discussed and reviewed the observedchanges followed by the formulation of anoutcome description. Outcome descriptions state thechanges in behaviour of a particular actor that the Tax Justice Programme has influenced. Thedescriptionsclearlyexplainwhathappened,bywhom,whenandwhereithappened.Theoutcomedescriptionsarebriefstatementsofapproximately2-3sentences.Inadditiontotheformulationoftheoutcomes,participantswereaskedtodescribethesignificanceoftheoutcomesonthenational,regionalandgloballevel,aswellastoarticulatethecontributionoftheTaxJusticeprogrammetotheoutcome.
ExampleofanoutcomefromtheTaxJusticeProgramme
OutcomeDescriptionIn2015,theMinisterofFinanceofMozambiquerecognisedthenegativeconsequencesofDoubleTaxation
Treaties(DTTs),stoppedsigningnewonesandisawaitingreviewofthecurrent9DTTsinMozambique.
Significance:Mozambiquehas9DTTsofwhichmostofthemgiveawaysignificanttaxingrightsonRoyalties,Dividends,
InterestandService Fees, especially theoneswith SouthAfrica,UAEandMauritius. Therewas the round
trippingofinvestmentsandtreatyshoppingbyinvestorsthroughMauritiusandUAE.Asaresultoftheabove,
theMozambicanGovernmentwaslosingverysignificantrevenuewhichcouldhavebeenusedforprogressive
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spendingtoimprovequalityofeducationwhichisverylowwithsomepupilslearningundertreesandstudying
seatedon the floors. Theamount lost toDTTs in FiscalAreasofMaputo,Beira, TeteandNacala in 2014
amounted to over 1.97 BillionMeticais, equivalent to over US$119 million. After the recognition by the
MinisterofFinance,anewunitspecificallyworkingonDTTsintheMozambiqueTaxAuthoritywassetup.
Contribution:AADKprovidedtechnicalandfinancialsupportwhichenabledAAMozto:
• Conductastudyon“Socio-economicimplicationsofDTTsinMozambique”in2015 • Carry out debates and conferences in 2015 on how to improve Domestic ResourceMobilisation
(DRM)byreviewingthecurrentgenerousDTTframeworkwiththeMinistryofFinance,ThePlanning
andBudgetCommittee,MozambiqueTaxAuthorityandCSOsincludingyouthActivistainMaputo,
Mozambique. • ConductvalidationmeetingsofthestudyonDTTswiththeTaxAuthorityandMinistryofFinancein
2015 • Publishanopen letterontheDTTattendedtotheMinisterofFinance inanationalnewspaper in
March2015.AfterpublishingoftheletterAAMozwasinvitedbytheMinisterofFinancetodiscuss
DTTs.
TheP4CAdvisorwasinstrumentalin:
• DevelopmentoftheTORsforthestudyonDTTs • HiringofconsultanttoconductstudyonDTTs • Reviewingandvalidatingthestudy • Designingadvocacystrategybasedonrecommendationsfromthestudy
Inaddition,YouthActivistacontributedtoalargerpublicdebateforgovernmenttoreviewtheDTTsandthe
MinistryofFinanceactivelyparticipated.
Examplesofoutcomeswillbegiventhroughoutthereport.Forafulloverviewoftheoutcomes,seeANNEX1:OutcomesTaxJusticeProgramme.
3. Analysisandinterpretation:Inadditiontoformulatingtheoutcomes,thechangeagentswereaskedtoclassifytheiroutcomes,inordertoenabletheevaluatortoanswertheevaluationquestions.Thefollowingcategorieswereusedfortheclassification:
Classificationfield CategoryYear Country SocialActor Objectives Intended/Unintended Changelevel • Local
• National• Regional• Global
Programmefocus • Improvedsocialservices• ProgressiveTaxation
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Significancelevel • Major
• Important• Minor
%Contribution ProgrammeModalities • TaxAdvisor
• Training4Change• Inspirator• Programmesupport• GlobalTaxCampaign• Activista
TheevaluatorreviewedallcategorisationwithsupportfromHeleneBach. Duringtheentireprocess,documentationreviewandoutcomeharvestingworkshop,theevaluatorhasworkedtowardsoutcomedescriptionsthatareSMART4:Specific: The outcome is formulated in sufficient detail so that someone without specialised subject orcontextualknowledgewillbeabletounderstandandappreciateit.Measurable:Containingobjective,verifiablequantitativeandqualitative information, independentofwhoiscollectingdata.Howmuch?Howmany?Whenandwheredidthechangehappen?Achieved:Thedescriptionestablishesaplausible relationshipand logical linkbetweentheoutcomeandthechangeagent’sactionsthatinfluencedit.Inotherwords,howdidthechangeagentcontributetotheoutcome,inwholeorpart,indirectlyorindirectly,intentionallyorunexpectedly?Relevant:Theoutcomerepresentsasignificantsteptowardstheimpactthatthechangeagentseeks.Timely:Whiletheoutcomeoccurredwithinthetimeperiodbeingevaluated,thechangeagent’scontributionmayhaveoccurredmonths,orevenyears,before.ThisevaluationprocessandproductwasguidedbythefourstandardsofevaluationoftheAmericanEvaluationAssociation5.Thus,theevaluatorensuredthattheevaluation’sfindingswerenotonlyvalidbutalsocredible to the intendedusers.Theevaluatoralso took intoaccount thewelfareof thoseinvolvedintheevaluation,aswellasthoseaffectedbyitsresultswithquestionssuchasconfidentialityofdataandsourcesaddressedheadon.Finally,theevaluatorensuredthattheevaluationprocedureswerepracticalandcost/effectiveandcausetheminimumdisruptionofActionAid’songoingactivitiesrequiredtoachievethemaximumnecessaryinformation.
4. SubstantiationDuringthedesignphase,theevaluatoraskedtheuserswhatwouldmakethewholesetofoutcomescredibleenoughfortheusesoftheevaluation.Thefollowingcriteriawereagreedupon:
a) Theoutcomeswereprovidedbyinformantswhowereknowledgeableabouttheoutcomes.b) Thechangeagentsagreedtogoonrecordwiththeinformationtheyprovidedaboutoutcomes.c) Theoutcomedescriptionsconcernobservablefactsandarespecificandconcreteenoughto
beverifiable.
4Wilson-Grau,R.,Britt,H.,OutcomeHarvesting,FordFoundation,2013,p.10.5SeetheuniversalstandardsforevaluationoftheAmericanEvaluationAssociationatwww.eval.org:
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d) Thechangeagentswereaskedtoprovideanydocumentsthatcontainedevidencetosupporttheoutcomechangeaswellastheircontribution.Thedocumentsprovidedasevidencewereamongstothers:Invitationsformeetingsfrome.g.theMinistriesofFinance;MemorandumsofUnderstanding,lawsandpolicies;nationalbudgets;newspaperarticles;researchreportsandpolicyrecommendations.Thesedocumentswereverifiedbytheevaluatorandwerefoundtoprovideevidenceforasubstantialpartoftheoutcomestatements.
e) TherelationshipbetweenhowtheTaxJusticeProgrammecontributedandtheoutcomeswasjudgedbytheevaluatortobeplausible.Insomecases,thecontributiondescriptions,althoughprovidingalotofinformationonwhattheTaxJusticeProgrammedid,donotcontainanexplicitlink between the contribution and the outcome statement. The documentation that wasprovidedhowever clarified that link.Only 4 outcomeswere not included in the evaluation,becausetheywerenotconsideredcredibleenough.
f) Therewascross-validationbetweendifferentAAcountryoffices,AIandAADK.
Additionally, the evaluator sent a representative set of outcomes to third parties - who wereindependentbutknowledgeableabouttheoutcomes-toenhancethevalidityaswellasthecredibilityof the findings. The evaluator andHelene Bach selected 20 of the outcomes thatwere sent to 8substantiators.7ofthemrespondedandsubstantiated18outcomes.Thesubstantiatorsfullyagreedwith13oftheoutcomedescriptionsandpartiallyagreedwiththeother5.Foranoverviewoftheseoutcomesandthecommentsofthesubstantiators,pleaseseeANNEX5:Tableofsubstantiatorsandtheir agreement to the outcomes. Where relevant, the outcomes were revised based on thecommentsofthesubstantiators.
5. LimitationsoftheevaluationCoincidingwiththeOutcomeHarvestingreview,theapplicationprocesstobecomeastrategicpartnerto Danidawas launched. Thismeant that all staff from the AA country office and theGlobal TaxProgrammepresentattheOutcomeHarvestingworkshophadtodevelopdocumentsforexpressionofinterestandsubsequentlyproposalsforcountryprogrammes.TheAAstaffpresentattheOutcomeHarvestingWorkshopalsotookpartinthisprocess,whichmadeitchallengingforthemtoallocatesufficienttimetofinalisetheoutcomesandprovidedocumentsforsubstantiationaftertheworkshop.Theprocesswasthusdelayed,butallmaterialandinformationwassubmitted.
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FindingsoftheevaluationThischaptersummarisesthemainfindingsoftheevaluation.Afterlookingatsomefindingsonthewholesetofoutcomes,thereportfocussesonansweringtheevaluationquestions.Thefindingsarebasedontrendsandpatternsthatcouldbedetectedintheoutcomes.Examplesofoutcomeswillbeused to illustrate the findings. Every section ends with conclusions and recommended points fordiscussion.
1. GeneralfindingsIn total, 53 outcomes were collected during this Outcome Harvest. This was not an exhaustiveinventory of the outcomes achieved by the Tax Justice Programme during the evaluation period.Proportionatelymoreoutcomesmaybegatherediftheexercisewasextended.Theoutcomesinthisevaluation reflect a representative set of changes based on the insights and observations of thechange agents within the programme. At the end of the harvesting workshop, the participantsreflectedonthetotalsetofoutcomestheyhadcollected.Theyidentifiedchangeareasthatwerenotyet represented or they thoughtwere underrepresented. In theweek after theworkshop, a fewoutcomeswereaddedintheseareas.Afterthat,thechangeagentsagreed,thattheoutcomeswererepresentativeforthechangesachievedbytheTaxJusticeProgrammeduringtheevaluationperiod.
LocationThepicturebelowshowsthespreadoftheoutcomesoverthecountriesinvolvedinthisevaluation.Inaddition,13globaloutcomeswerecollected.Theseareoutcomesrelatedtoglobalresearchandadvocacy,thusnotdirectlylinkingtospecificnationalcontextsbute.g.aimedatrelevantinternationalinstitutions.Figure1Overviewofnumberofoutcomespercountry
Tanzania
Mozambique
Uganda
Zambia
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TimeThisevaluationaimedtolookforoutcomesthatoccurredbetween2014-2016.Afewoutcomesfrombefore 2014 were taken into account, because they were regarded as being valuable for thisevaluation.Figure2shows,thatmostoutcomestookplacebetween2015-2016,withapeakin20166.Naturally, people tend to have the most recent outcomes in their mind or those that are mostmemorable.Thismightinfluencethisfigure.
Figure2Numberofoutcomesperyear
SignificanceBesidesdescribingtheoutcomeandthecontribution,thechangeagentswereaskedtodescribethesignificanceoftheoutcomeonthenational,regionalandgloballevelandtoratethissignificance.Although most of the significance descriptions are only meaningful in relation to the individualoutcomes,somerecurrentissuescouldbeidentified.Onthenationallevel,changeagentsthoughttheoutcomesweresignificantbecausethey:
• openedupspaceforcivilsocietytoengageonTaxJusticewithMinistriesofFinance,whichdidnotexistbefore.
• ledtoenhancedunderstandingoftaxrelatedissuesamongstmembersofthepublic• enhancetransparencyandaccountabilityinthemobilisationandutilisationoftax.• strengthenedpublicsupportforTaxJustice.• pushedgovernmentstointroduceprogressivetaxpolicies.• puttaxontheagenda,ofgovernments,mediaandCSOs.• arestepstowardsamoretransparentandfairtaxsystem.• DTT’swerepreviouslynotsubjecttoanypoliticaldiscussion.• communitiesbecameawareabouthowthetaxsystemshouldfunction.
6Incasetheoutcometookplaceduringacertainperiod,thestartingyearwasmentioned
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Ontheregionalleveltheoutcomeswereregardedassignificantbecausethey:
• helpedbuildaregionalmovementforspecificcampaigns.• bringnationaltaxissuestotheregionallevel.• learningaboutGovernment/CSOengagementintheregionispassedontootherCSOsinthe
region• caninput/inspireregionaladvocacy.
Theoutcomeshadsignificanceonthegloballevelbecause:
• nationaloutcomesgaveinputtogloballobbying.• issuesonprogressivetaxationwereputontheagendaofglobalfora.• Theyhelpedcreatingaspaceforsharedlearningoninfluencinggovernments• Research reportsofferagoodbasis tomove fromsimplycriticizing towardsestablishinga
moreconstructivedialoguewithbusinesses.Thereportshaveinspiredothercountriestotakeaction.
• theyshowthatAAisacrediblepartneronTaxJusticeforgovernments.Theoutcomeswereeitherreportedasimportantormajorchangesbythechangeagents.Onlyafewoutcomes(6%)werereportedasminorchanges.Thispicturemaybeinfluencedbythefactthatinafirstharvest,changeagentstendtofocusonthebiggeroutcomes.ItwillbeinterestingforAADKtoseehowthispictureevolveswhentheycontinueusingOHastheirmonitoringapproach.
Figure3Numberofoutcomespersignificancelevel
UnintendedoutcomesMostoutcomes(87%)werereportedasintendedoutcomes.Only13%wasidentifiedasunintendedoutcomes.All,exceptone,oftheunintendedoutcomestookplaceinZambia.UnintendedoutcomesoftheTaxJusticeProgramme:
In2016,thegovernmentofZambia(particularlytheMinistryofFinance)nominatedActionAidZambiatobe
partofthereferenceteamthatwillbeconsultedbyMinistryofFinancetodiscusstaxreforms&expenditure
tofeedintothenationaleconomicrecoveryprogramme;andtheMinistryofFinanceproposedthatCSOs
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shouldbeinvolvedinthetaxtreatyformulationprocess.ActionAidZambiawasgiventheroleof
coordinatingtheparticipationofCSO’sinthetaxtreatiesformulationprocess.Themeetingshavebeen
regulartwice(2)inaquarter.[31]7
InNovember2016,TheAfricanUnionPermanentRepresentativesCommittee(PRC)invitedAAZambia
countrydirectortomakeapresentationtotheCommitteeonmeasuresAfricangovernmentsshouldadopt
tocombatIllicitFinancialflows.[33]
In2016,inhis2017budgetspeechtheZambianMinisterofFinancesaidthatfundswillbeallocatedfor
investmentsintechnologiestoensureminimisationofwastageofpublicfunds.[34]
In2016,theNationalRoadFundAgency(NRFA)inZambiahasbeguntheprocessofrequiringallcontractors
andconsultantsworkingforNRFAtoregularizetheirtaxpositionwiththeZambiaRevenueAuthority(ZRA)
beforetheNFRApayscontractororconsultant.[35]
In2016,theZambiaInstituteofMassCommunication(ZAMCOM)introducedthatthestudentsaspartof
theirassignmentswriteabouttheimpactoftaxinjusticeontheeconomy.[38]
In2014,300citizensorganizedtoprotestagainstthetaxavoidanceoftheLondon-basedmininggiant
VedantaowningKonkolaCopperMine(KCM).[39]
In2014,therevenueauthoritiesofZambiaundertookaforensicauditofcompanyKonkolaCopperMine
(KCM).[40]
2. Answerstoevaluationquestions
InwhichsocialactorsisActionAidinfluencingchange?ActionAidDenmarkwantedtounderstandinwhichsocialactorstheTaxJusticeProgrammehadbeenabletoinfluencechange.Theevaluatorclassifiedtheoutcomesaccordingtothesocialactors.Figure5 shows that the Tax Justice Programme mainly influences national governments. 47% of theoutcomes demonstrate a change in behaviour of national governments, 26% ofwhich are aboutMinistriesofFinance.
7Thenumbersinbrackets[0]refertotheoutcomenumbersinAnnex1:OutcomesoftheTaxJusticeProgramme.Whentherearenumerousoutcomes,thenumberswillbelistedinfootnotes.
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Figure4Numberofoutcomespersocialactor
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MostoftheoutcomesrelatetotheMinistryofFinanceandnationalgovernmentscollaboratingonprogressive taxationwithActionAidandotherCSOs,adopting their recommendationsor changingtheirpoliciesandpracticesaroundprogressivetaxation.AfewexamplesofoutcomesrelatedtotheMinistriesofFinancebeingwillingtocollaboratewithAADKandotherCSOs:In2014,thePresidentoftheMozambiqueTaxAuthority(ATM)signedanMOUforexchangeofinformation
andcollaborationonworkwithActionAidMozambiqueontaxeducation,researchandregistrationofcitizens
fortaxpurposesinMozambique.[1]
In2015,theMinistryofFinanceinTanzaniainvitedtheTanzaniaTaxJusticeCoalition,acoalitionofCSOsof
whichActionAidTanzaniaisamember,for3consultationmeetingsondomesticresourcemobilisationthrough
taxcollection,especiallyduringthebudgetaryplanningprocesses.[12]
In2015, theMinisterofEconomyandFinance inMaputo,Mozambique invitedActionAidMozambique to
provideexplanationsontheFinanceforDevelopmentprocesstoimprovethedomesticresourcesmobilization
tofinancesocialsectors,especiallyeducation,healthandwater.[8]
In2016,thegovernmentofZambia(particularlytheMinistryofFinance)nominatedActionAidZambiatobe
partofthereferenceteamthatwillbeconsultedbyMinistryofFinancetodiscusstaxreforms&expenditure
to feed into thenationaleconomic recoveryprogramme;and theMinistryof Financeproposed thatCSOs
shouldbeinvolvedinthetaxtreatyformulationprocess.ActionAidZambiawasgiventheroleofcoordinating
theparticipationofCSO’sinthetaxtreatiesformulationprocess.Themeetingshavebeenregular(twiceina
quarter).[31]
In addition to collaboration, the outcomes also demonstrate how Ministries of Finance are adoptingrecommendationsbyActionAid.Afewexamples:In2015,theMinistryofFinance-TaxPolicyDepartmentinUgandaadoptedtherecommendationbySEATINI-
UgandaandActionAid research to re-negotiate tax treaties that are harmful toUganda’s tax base. They
draftedapolicytoguidethenegotiations,whichiscurrentlyunderdiscussion.[17]
In2017,theMinisterofFinanceadoptedthefollowingproposalsmadebyActionAidZambiaandtheZambia
TaxPlatforminitsbudgetfor2017:
8RIGO=RegionalIntergovernmentalOrganisation(e.g.EU,AU)
18
• EnhancingpowersoftheZambianRevenueAuthorities(ZRA)tocooperatewithothergovernment
agenciesonmattersoftaxation.
• Appointsomegovernmentagenciestoserveastaxagentsandcollecttaxfromsuppliersofgoods
andservicesengagedbythesegovernmentagenciesandremittoZRA.
• Buildlinkagesbetweentaxationandbanking."[36]
IntheFinancialyear2015/16,thetaxpolicydepartmentoftheMinistryofFinance(MoF)inUgandaadopted
the recommendation by the CSO Tax Justice Alliance to develop a policy framework for Double taxation
agreements(DTA)negotiations.[21]
Finally,theoutcomesshowevidenceofMinistriesofFinancechangingtheirpoliciesandpractices.In2015,theMinisterofFinancerecognisedthenegativeconsequencesofDoubleTaxationTreaties(DTTs),
stoppedsigningnewonesandisawaitingreviewofthecurrent9DTTsinMozambique.[2]
In 2016, the Mozambique Tax Authorities (ATM) introduced guidelines for corporates to seal alcoholic
beveragesandtobaccoproductsleavingthecountryasithadrevenueimplicationstoSouthAfrica,Swaziland,
MalawiandZimbabwe.[10]
In2016,theNationalRoadFundAgency(NRFA)inZambiahasbeguntheprocessofrequiringallcontractors
andconsultantsworkingforNRFAtoregularizetheirtaxpositionwiththeZambiaRevenueAuthority(ZRA)
beforetheNFRApayscontractororconsultant.[35]
Conclusionsandrecommendedpointsfordiscussion:ActionAid ismainly influencing national governments andMinistries of Finance through its TaxJusticeProgramme.Theoutcomesfollowacommonsequenceofoutcomesintermsoflobbying.Ministries of Finance and national governments first need to recognise the importance ofprogressivetaxationandbewillingtocollaboratewithCSOsaroundthisissue,beforetheyaccepttheirinputandfinallychangetheirpoliciesandpractices.TheoutcomesrelatedtochangesinthenationalgovernmentandMinistriesofFinancedemonstrate,thatActionAidisseenasanexpertandcrediblepartnerontheissueofTaxJusticebytheseactors.Duringtheharvestingworkshop,thechangeagentsweresurprisedthattheseactorsformedthelargestcategory.TheMinistriesofFinanceareakeyactorrelatedtopoliciesontaxationandtheimplementation of these laws, however ActionAid could in the next phase of the Tax JusticeProgrammediscussifthereareotheractorsthattheprogrammeshouldaimtoinfluenceinamorestrategicway. Inaddition,AADKcoulddiscusshowitcanbuildonthesuccess inchangingtheseactorstoinfluenceNationalGovernmentsandMinistriesofFinanceinothercountries.
Towhat extenddo theoutcomes represent patternsof progress towards thestrategicobjectivesoftheTaxJusticeprogramme?The various interventions on tax of ActionAid have previously been coordinated, but not fullyintegratedintooneprogrammewithcommonlysharedobjectives.DuringthefirstdayoftheOutcomeHarvestingworkshop,thedifferentintermediateobjectivesoftheindividualprojectswerediscussedandmergedinto5commonlyagreedobjectives.
19
Thechangeagentswereaskedtoclassifytheoutcomesaccordingtothese5strategicobjectives.Figure5Numberofoutcomesperobjective
GiventhattheTaxJusticeProgrammeismainlyinfluencingnationalgovernments,itisnotsurprisingthatmostoutcomes relate toobjectivenumber1:governmentsmakeprogressive/fairer tax rules.Onlyafewoutcomesrelatetoobjective2,4and5.Oneoutcomeiscategorizedasother.Thisoutcomerelatestofunding:In2015,NORADallocated3millionEUROsfor3yearsandOpenSocietyFoundation
USD $100,000 for one years allocated for 6 countries (ActionAid Tanzania,Mozambique,Malawi,
Nepal,EthiopiaandMyanmar)forActionAidInternationalfortheprogrammeonfinancingincreased
government investment in high quality public education especially for girls through progressive
taxation[49].Figure6shows,whichactorstheTaxJusticeprogrammeisinfluencingundereachoftheseobjectives.
ThestrategicobjectivesoftheTaxJusticeprogramme:
1. GOVERNMENTSMAKEPROGRESSIVE/FAIRERTAXRAISINGRULES(INCREASESIZEOFREVENUE/BUDGET)
Ensure governments develop and enforce fair and transparent rules on corporate taxation and aprogressivesystemoftaxation.
2. BETTERCORPORATEPOLICY/PRACTICEMakeitsociallyindefensibleforcorporationstoavoidtaxorlobbyfortaxincentives
3. STRONGPUBLICANDCIVILSOCIETYBuildaglobalmovementfortaxjusticewithstrongpoliticalclout.4. FAIRALLOCATIONTOSERVICES(INCREASESHAREOFBUDGET)governmentsincreasebudgetallocations
and or actual disbursement for public services in health, education, and agriculture as a result ofimplementingprogressivesystemoftaxation
5. COMMUNITIESMONITORINGSPENDINGANDQUALITYOFSERVICES(INCREASESCRUTINY/SENSITIVITYOFBUDGET)Accountabilityandcommunitymonitoringofspending,onandqualityof,publicservices
20
Figure6Numberofoutcomesperobjectiveandactor
Conclusionsandrecommendedpointsfordiscussion:The Tax Justice Programme is mainly making progress on objective 1: Governments makeprogressive/fairertaxraisingrules.ActionAidshouldthereforediscusswhat itcandotoachievemoreprogresson theotherobjectives aswell. Since theobjectivesweredevelopedduring theharvestingworkshop,itwouldbeadvisabletoconfirmthemwiththeprogrammepartnersaswellasrevisethembasedonthefindingsfromthisoutcomeharvest.
How did the Tax Justice Programme contribute to the outcomes through itsprogrammemodalities (Training4Change, Tax Advisor, support to governanceprogramming,GlobalTaxCampaign,InspiratorandActivista)?In addition to formulating the outcomes, Outcome Harvesting identifies the contribution of thechangeagenttotheoutcomes.ItrecognisesthefactthatnotalloftheseoutcomeswereachievedbyActionAidalone,butthatotheractorsandfactorsalsocontributedtothesechanges.The change agents were asked to describe how the Tax Justice Programme contributed to theoutcomes.Thiscontributioncouldbepartial,directorindirect.Additionally,thechangeagentstaggedthe programme modalities that contributed to the outcomes (multiple answers possible). ThedifferentprogrammemodalitiesoftheTaxJusticeprogrammeare:Training4Change(TCDCandtheGlobalPlatforms),TaxAdvisors,programmesupport,GlobalTaxCampaign,InspiratorandActivista9.
9SeeIntroductionforadescriptionofthesemodalities.
21
Figure7Numberofoutcomesperprogrammemodality
Figure7 shows, thatmostof thecontributionof theTax JusticeProgrammeto theoutcomeswasthrough programme support and Tax Advisors. The programme support consists of the financialcontributionandtechnicalsupportofAADKtothecountryofficestoenabletheiractivities.Inthatsense, it was never reported as the sole contribution to any of the outcomes. The Tax Advisorscontributed to 32% of the outcomes. The contribution descriptions clearly demonstrate how theAdvisors were instrumental in supporting the activities of the country offices. They had a crucialcontributionto38outof53outcomes.Youthactivitiesplay a smaller role in theTax JusticeProgramme than inotherpartsof theAADKgovernanceprogramme.ActionAidDenmarkisplanningtoputmorefocusonyouthintheTaxJusticeProgrammetoo in thecomingyears. In thisharvest, thechangeagents reportedacontributionofActivistato9%oftheoutcomes10.TheircontributionconsistedinorganisingdebatesonTaxationandDevelopment in which the Ministry participated and collecting signatures for petitions andcampaigning.TheActivistamodalitywasneverthesolecontributionintheseoutcomes,butalwayssupportedtheotherprogrammemodalitiesintheTaxJusticeProgrammeininfluencingtheoutcomes.The evaluator observed, that the change agents present during the harvesting workshop mainlyreportedon themodalities that theyweredirectly involved in (workdoneby their countryoffice,Advisorplacedintheiroffice,researchfromtheGlobalTaxCampaignthattheyusedorwereinvolvedin). No youth from Activista were present. This might explain partly, though not fully, why theircontribution is underreported. Annual reports from the four countries and other additionaldocumentsdidnotprovideanyadditionaloutcomesrelatedtoyouthengagementorinvolvementofActivistaeither.ThecontributionofthemodalityTraining4Change(7%)andInspirators(2%)totheoutcomeswasrathersmall.ThefollowingdiagramillustrateshowtheTaxJusticeProgrammecontributedtochangesrelatedtoDoubleTaxationTreatiesandshowstheconnectionsbetweentheoutcomesinthisarea.
10Outcomenumbers1,2,3,4,13,14,16,26,30,38,41
world’spoorestcountriesofvitalrevenue.
InMarch2016,TheDanishMinisterforTax invited AADKandtheDanishdevelopmentorganisation IBIS for ameeting to discuss DoubleTaxationTreaties(DTT).
In April 2015, the Tax Commission of theDanishParliamentheld,forthefirsttimeapublic meeting with the participation ofCSOs on where principles for the DoubleTaxation Treaties (DTT) and policycoherencewerediscussed.[51]
In November 2014, members of theDanish Parliament called the Ministerfor Tax for the first time for aconsultation on Double TaxationTreaties (DTT)and their impacton thedevelopingcountries.[53]
InMarch2016,TheDanishMinisterforTax invited AADK and the Danishdevelopment organisation IBIS for ameeting to discuss Double TaxationTreaties(DTT).[52]
AADKResearch‘TimeforChange’2014
AADKlobbiedpoliticians
AAmozstudyonDTTsinMozambiqueAADKfinancialand
TechnicalsupportIn2015,theMinisterofFinancerecognised
thenegativeconsequencesofDoubleTaxationTreaties(DTTs),stoppedsigningnewonesandisawaitingreviewofthecurrent9
DTTsinMozambique.[2]
P4CAdvisorMozambique
AAmozreviewingtheDTTswithMinistry
AAmozpublishesopenletteronDTTsto
Ministryinnewspaper
Activistacontributedtolargerpublicdebatefor
governmenttoreviewDTT
SEATINIsetupworkinggroupandguidelinesforrevampingTJA
P4CAdvisorUganda
IntheFinancialyear2015/16,thetaxpolicydepartment of the Ministry of Finance(MoF) in Uganda adopted therecommendation by the CSO Tax JusticeAlliancetodevelopapolicyframework forDouble taxation agreements (DTA)negotiations.[21]
Between 2014-2015, Regionalnetworks in Uganda rely onSEATINI-U to boost regionaladvocacy on DTT/As by jointlyimplementing activities related toDTAs/Tax.[22]
AAUtrainingontreatiesforCSOsandmedia
In 2014, The Tax Justice Alliance inUganda became fully operational and isinfluencing progressive tax policies in amorecoordinatedwaychairedbySEATINI-Uganda.[19]
FinancialsupportAAU
AAdevelopedthereport
‘Mistreated’
From February 2016 and the following yearpoliticians discussed for the first time about thescale of negative impact of thecurrentglobal taxtreatiesnetworkonthedevelopingworldbasedontheActionAidInternationalreportMistreated.[43]
FromFebruary2016andthefollowingyearmediadiscussed for the first time about the scale ofnegative impact of the current global tax treatiesnetwork on the developing world based on theActionAidInternationalreportMistreated.[44]
In 2016, the European Commission made arecommendation to the member statesthrough its “Anti-Tax Avoidance Package” tolook into tax treaties signed by EUMemberStateswithdevelopingcountries.[45]
AADKfinancialandTechnical
support
Uganda
Mozambique
ZambiaSugarCase
Between2012and2016,theZambiangovernmentreviewedandrenegotiatedtheZambia-UKDoubleTaxationAgreement(DTA)andtheZambia-IrelandDoubleTaxationAgreement(DTA).[32]
AADKfinancialandtechnicalsupport
AAmozusesresearchtolobbygovernment
Zambia
Thechangeagentswerealsoaskedtoratetheextentoftheircontributionsinpercentages.Theextent
ofthecontributiontotheoutcomeswaspositivelyjudgedbythechangeagents,generallyabove60%
withamajority(19outcomes)with80%contributionbytheTaxJusticeprogramme.
Figure8Numberofoutcomesperpercentageofcontribution
3Outcomeswereidentifiedwherethecontributionwasjudgedas90%.Theseoutcomes11
were:
FromFebruary2016andthe followingyearmediadiscussed for the first timeabout thescaleofnegativeimpactofthecurrentglobaltaxtreatiesnetworkonthedevelopingworldbasedontheActionAidInternationalreportMistreated:Thetaxtreatiesthataredeprivingtheworld’spoorestcountriesofvitalrevenue.[44]Contribution:Theresearchhasfortheveryfirsttimeeveranalysedandcomparedmorethan500internationaltaxtreatiesthatalllowandlower-middleincomecountriesinEasternandSouthernAsiaandSub-SaharanAfricahavesignedfrom1970until2014.Itscoredhowmuchataxtreatyrestrictsthewaythatthelowerincomecountrycantaxthreetypesoftax(profittax,withholdingtaxandothertaxingrightsincludingcapitalgainstax).Itenableskeystakeholderstocomparethetreatiestowhichtheirgovernmentispartytoneighbouringorsimilarcountries.AspartoftheTaxJusticeProgrammeresearch,qualityassuranceandpackagingofthereportforeasyunderstandingforpolicymakers,journalistsandpublicwasdonebytheGlobalTaxCampaign.In2016,ActionAidZambiaandActionAidUganda,aspartofthegovernanceprogramme/TaxJusticeprogramme,organisedtaxtreatiestrainingsinLusakaandKampalarespectivelyattendedbycivilsocietypartners,journalistsandprivatesectorrepresentativesfromZambia,Malawi,Uganda,andTanzania.ThetrainingcontributedtocreatingadebateinZambiaandUgandaonthetaxtreatiestakingthepointofdepartureintheresearchpresentedintheMistreatedreport.InApril2015,thePresidentoftheRepublicofMozambiquevisitedprimaryschools,threeinMaputoandoneschoolinGazaprovinces.Attheseschools,530desksweredistributed,benefiting3180students.[9]Contribution:InMarch2015,AAMOZsentanopenlettertothePresidentonthestateofeducationsectorlinking the financing for public education to tax. This letter thatwas published byAAMoz and led to thepresidentvisitingtheschools.AAMoz,withthehelpoftheTaxJusticeAdvisorandincollaborationwithTJN-AandtheDanishEmbassyinMozambiqueheldaconferenceonIllicitFinancialFlowswhereMinistryofFinanceofficials participated and contributed. After that, the Transparency and Tax Justice Coalition, under theguidanceofAAMoz,producedandpublishedanopenlettertothepresidentoftherepubliconhowtaxjusticecouldbeusedtocleareducationfinancingproblemsinthecountry.InNovember 2014,members of theDanish Parliament called theMinister for Tax for the first time for aconsultationonDoubleTaxationTreaties(DTT)andtheirimpactonthedevelopingcountries.[53]
11
SeeAnnex1forafulldescriptionoftheoutcomesandtheircontribution.
24
Contribution:TheAADKresearch‘Timetochange’,ontheDTTwithGhanacombinedwithlobbyingmembersofparliamenttocalltheMinisterforTaxforconsultation.
For3outcomesthecontributionoftheTaxJusticeProgrammewasratedsmall(20-30%).Forthelast
twooftheseoutcomes,ActionAiddidalottocontributetothechange.However,theyrecognisethat,
sinceitconcernshigh-levelchanges,manyotheractorsandfactorscontributedtothatchange.
In2015,basedonhigherrevenuesmainlyfromthetaxingoftheminingindustry,thegovernmentofZambiahasincreasedtheallocationforsocialsectorse.g.ineducationsectorwhere5,000teacherswillberecruited.The continuation of the School Feeding Programme, which enables a number of children from poor andvulnerablefamiliestostayinschool.[37]Contribution: AAZ contributed to the change through the Zambia Tax platform by advocating for highertaxationoftheminingindustry.Thiswasdonethroughresearchandadvocacywork.In 2016, the European Commissionmade a recommendation to themember states through its “Anti-TaxAvoidancePackage”tolookintotaxtreatiessignedbyEUMemberStateswithdevelopingcountries.[45]Contribution:ThereportMistreatedwaslaunchedattheEuropeanParliamentinApril2016,andpresentedtothePlatformforTaxGoodGovernance(akeyadvisorybodytotheEuropeanCommissionontax)inJanuary2016.Thereportgivesrecommendationstowhatthememberstatescoulddoonreviewingtaxtreaties.Thelaunchofthereportcontributedandstrengthenedtheinterestandpointedtotheneedtoreviewtaxtreaties.The parliament is more progressive related to fair taxation, and the Mistreated report with therecommendation strengthened the arguments of the European Parliament towards the Commission, byprovidingfactsandsubstantialbackgroundinformation.Also,advocacywasdonebyAADKthroughEurodad(theEuropeanNetworkonDebtandDevelopment)anetworkof47civilsocietyorganisations(CSOs).ThiswassupportedbytheActionAidInternationalpolicyanchorplacedwithAAUKandtheAApolicyofficerinBrussels.AtthethirdInternationalUNFinancingforDevelopment(FfD)intergovernmentalconferenceinAddisAbaba,Ethiopia in July 2015, the group of 77 Heads of State of developing countries led by chair South Africangovernment, tabledamotion for the introductionofan intergovernmental taxbodyunderauspiceof theUnitedNationstosetglobalnormsontaxandfoughtforitsinclusion,despiteintheendcompromisingonitduetosignificantpressurefromdevelopingcountries.[42]Contribution:-ActionAidattendedUNconsultationsonFinancingforDevelopmenttoworkwithothercivilsocietypartnerstoinputourkeymessagesinNewYork(January,April,June,2015).-ActionAidAfricaRegionalAdvocacyCoordinatorbuiltrelationshipswiththeAfricanUnionandUNEconomicCommissionforAfricaandopeneddoorsforAfricanCivilSocietypartnerstomeetwithandinfluenceAfricaRegionalConsultationaheadofFfDconference(March2015).-ActionAidledandorganisedCSOFfDforum’staxdiscussion(July2015)andhelpeddrafttaxtextintheCSOFfDdeclarationandtaxlobbyingpositionforCSOs,togetherwithEurodad.-ActionAidhelpedleadthediscussionontaxintheAWIDWomen’sRightsForumtogetkeywomen’srightsmovementalliestoincludetaxjusticekeymessages(July2015)intherunuptoFfD.-ActionAidstaffandAdvisorspresentatFfDsummithelpedcoordinateCSOdiscussionsandagreementontactics(policy,lobbying,media,stunts).-ActionAidpolicybriefing“Levellingup”providedexamplesofconcreteactionsgovernmentscouldtakerelatedtoensurecorporatespayingafairertaxshare,whichwasauniquecontributiontoempoweringdevelopingcountrygovernmentswithstrongargumentsandnarrativetouse.-ActionAid(staffandAdvisors)lobbiedandliaisedwithkeygovernmentdelegatespresentattheFinancingforDevelopmentConference.-15ActionAidofficerstookactiontobringpressuretobearonpolicymakersfortaxjusticeforfinancingfordevelopment,suchaslobbyingtheirnationalgovernmentswithlettersmeetingsandbriefings,mobilisingcitizensthroughsocialmedia,petitionsandstunts,andmediawork.-ActionAidtalkedtojournaliststogetmediacoverageonkeymessages,gotopinioneditorialspublishedandwroteblogs.CoverageincludedReuters,Bloomberg,CCTVandAlJazeera,BBCWorldService,EPS,EBC
25
[EthiopianBroadcastingCorporation],UNRadio,andSouth-SouthNews.-ActionAidspokeatororganisedanumberofsideeventsandpaneldiscussionontaxatFfDsummit
Asdescribedabove,theratingofthecontributionwasbasedontheperceptionofthechangeagents.
Theevaluatorverifiedthedocumentationprovidedbythechangeagentsasevidenceandadjusted
thepercentagesifnotenoughproofwasfound.Additionally,thesubstantiatorswere,independent
fromthechangeagent,alsoaskedtoratethecontributionoftheTaxJusticeProgramme.Ofthe18
outcomesthatweresubstantiated,mostcontributionswereratedthesameorevenhigheras the
ratingbythechangeagents.Only3outcomeswereratedashavingcontributedlessthanjudgedby
thechangeagents.Theoutcomewithmostdifferenceinratingisoutcome48whichwasjudgedat
90%bythechangeagentandonlyat50%bythesubstantiator.(SeeANNEX5:Tableofsubstantiators)
Conclusionandrecommendedpointsfordiscussion:ThecontributionoftheTaxJusticeProgrammetotheoutcomeswasmainlythroughprogramme
support from AADK and through thework of the Tax Advisors. The contribution of Activista is
significantlysmaller.Thisisinlinewiththeset-upoftheprogramme,whereAADKplannedtofirst
focusoncapacitybuildingandinthenextphaseontheinvolvementofyouth.AADKcouldanalyse
theoutcomesrelatedtoActivistafurthertoidentifymodels,lessonslearnedandpossiblebarriers
foryouthengagementtoinformfuturestrategies.
Furthermore,AADKcoulddiscussifActivistayouthcouldbeinvolvedintheharvestingofoutcomes.
Inthisharvest,thechangeagentswereaskedtodescribethecontributionandtagtheprogramme
modalitiesthatcontributed.Anotheroptionforasubsequentharvestmightbetoaskthechange
agentstospecifythecontributionforthedifferentprogrammemodalities.Forexample:
HowdidtheTaxJusticeprogrammecontributetotheoutcomethroughitsprogrammemodalities?
• Activista:Pleaseexplain
• GlobalTaxprogramme:Pleaseexplain
• People4Change:Pleaseexplain.
Thiswouldallowforamoredetailedanalysisofthecontributioninfunctionofthemodalities.
AADK should also reflect on the reason for the low contribution of the Training4 Change and
Inspiratorstotheoutcomes.
TowhatextentdotheoutcomesachievedbyAADKshowthattheworkofAADKonTaxJusticeislocallyrooted?AkeytrademarkofActionAidisthatitsworkislocallyrootedincommunitiesandwithpeopleliving
inpoverty. Thiswas forexampleacknowledged inanexternal stock-takingdone in201612
. In this
section,theevaluatorexaminedifthiswasalsoakeyfeatureinActionAid’sworkonTaxJustice.
Theevaluatoridentifiedwhichoftheoutcomedescriptionswerelocallyrootedbasedonthefollowing
3criteriadefinedbyAADK:
• Interactionandinvolvementwithcommunitiesatlocallevel
• LocalCSOsengagedaskeyactors13
;
• Engagementofthegeneralpublic
12
AAIexternalStock-takingbyconsultantsLiepolloLebohangPheko,DannyBurns;TobinAldrichandJamesCrowley,2016
13
ThiscriterionappliestolocalCSOswhoarenotthechangeagentorpartofthegroup/coalitionformingthechangeagent
(theindividualororganizationthatinfluencesanoutcome).InmanyoftheoutcomesCSOs(AA,partnersandthenational
taxcoalitions)werethechangeagent.
26
Ifoneofthesecriteriaappliedtoanoutcome,itwasclassifiedaslocallyrooted.Thesecriteriawere
onlyapplied to theoutcomes,not thecontribution. Inotherwords, theevaluatorexamined if the
outcome description showed evidence of the 3 criteria and not if ActionAid involved local CSOs,
communitiesandthepublicinitscontributiontotheoutcomes.
Intotal,1714
outof53outcomes,or32%oftheoutcomeswereidentifiedaslocallyrooted.
Figure9Numberoflocallyrootedoutcomes
Figure9alsoshowsthelocallyrootedoutcomesaccordingtothecriteriabywhichtheywerejudged.
Thelocallyrootednessismainlyshownthroughtheinvolvementoflocalcommunities(17%).
Exampleslocallyrootedoutcomes:In2016,thecommunitiesinNamaacha,Marracuene,Chibuto,Bilene,Jangamodistrict,Mocuba,MaganjadaCosta,Nammaroi, Inharrime,MontepuezandMocímboadaPraiainMozambiquedemandedtransparencyfromtheauthoritiesinthecollectionandallocationofrevenuesfromtaxes,throughpublicdebates,inter-facemeetingswithauthoritiesand,localmonitoring.[7]In 2016, Citizens and media in Uganda campaigned against Members of Parliament’s move to exemptthemselvesfrompayingtaxontheirallowances.4.3MillioncitizenssignedthepetitionandhandeditovertotheMinistry.[20]In2014,300citizensinZambiaorganizedtoprotestagainstthetaxavoidanceoftheLondon-basedmininggiantVedantaowningKonkolaCopperMine(KCM).[39]
Conclusionandrecommendedpointsfordiscussion:The outcomes of the Tax Justice programme illustrate good examples of being locally rooted.
However,onthetotalnumberofoutcomes,only1/3couldbeidentifiedaslocallyrooted.
14
OutcomeNumbers20,23,27,39,40,4,6,7,11,13,14,15,30,38,19,24,28
27
AADKcouldthereforereflectonhowitcanbuilduponitsstrengthtoachievelocallyrootedresults
inotherprogrammes,inordertoachievemoreoutcomesintheTaxJusticeprogrammethatare
locallyrooted.
Inasubsequentharvest,AADKcouldconsidertoapplythecriteria for locallyrootedalsotothe
contributionbyaskingthesocialchangeagentstodescribehowtheyinvolvedcommunities,CSOs
andthepublicininfluencingtheoutcomes.
To what extent do the outcomes show linkages between the local, national,regionalandgloballevelofadvocacy?
In2014,AADKwasdelegatedtheresponsibilityforcoordinationandlearningofallgovernancerelated
workintheAAFederation.ThisisorganisedundertheDemocraticGovernanceDelegation.Akeyfocus
oftheDemocraticGovernanceDelegationhasbeentoconnectthecountrylevelinterventionsboth
horizontalformutuallearningandverticalforregionalandglobaladvocacy.Theevaluatorassessed
inhowfartheoutcomesshowthattheselinkageshavebeenachieved.Thechangeagentswereasked
toclassifytheoutcomesaschangesonlocal,national,regionalorgloballevel.
Definitionoflevels:
Local:communities
National:Country
Regional:Africa,relevantinstitutionsasAfricanUnion;Europee.g.DoubletaxationTreatiesaffectingcountriesintheGlobalSouth;country-by-countryreportingagreement
Global: relevant global treaties and institutions e.g. UN Committee of Experts on International
CooperationinTaxMatters
Most outcomes of the Tax Justice Programme (68%) relate to changes happening at the national
level15
.
Figure10Percentageofoutcomesperchangelevel
15
Thispicturemaybeinfluencedbythefactthatofthe16changeagentsthatharvestedoutcomes,only3changeagents
wereassignedtoharvestoutcomesonthegloballevel.
28
Verticallinkages:Intotal,theevaluatoridentified17outcomeswithclearlinkagestootherlevels.
Theoutcomesonlocalleveldonotshowalinkwiththegloballevel.Themajorityofthenationalleveloutcomeshappenedbecauseof a contributionbyAAMozambique,AAUganda,AAZambiaorAA
Tanzaniaandpartnersonly,withsupportfromAADK.Anexceptiontothisisthecollaborativeresearch
byAADKandAAGhana‘TimetoChange’whichcontributedtothefollowingchanges:
InNovember 2014,members of theDanishParliament called theMinister for Tax for the first time for aconsultationonDoubleTaxationTreaties(DTT)andtheirimpactonthedevelopingcountries.[53]InApril2015,theTaxCommissionoftheDanishParliamentheld,forthefirsttimeapublicmeetingwiththeparticipationofCSOsonwhereprinciplesfortheDoubleTaxationTreaties(DTT)andpolicycoherencewerediscussed.[51]InMarch2016,TheDanishMinisterforTaxinvitedAADKandtheDanishdevelopmentorganisationIBISforameetingtodiscussDoubleTaxationTreaties(DTT).[52]
ItwasthefirsttimethattwoActionAidoffices(DenmarkandGhana)cooperatedonaresearchlike
this.ThishasbeenamodelthathasinspiredotherActionAidofficestoundertakeasimilarprocess
e.g.UKwithSenegalandMalawiandIrelandwithZambia.
In addition, 916
out of 35 outcomes on the national level had a contribution by the Global Tax
programme. This contribution mainly constitutes of the reports developed by the Global Tax
Campaign, suchas the research ‘Getting togood’17
, ‘Race to thebottom-Taxcompetition inEast-
Africa18
’aswellasthe‘Mistreated19
’report.Theevidenceprovidedinthesereportswasusedbythe
nationalActionAidofficesintheirlobbyandadvocacyeffortstowardstheirgovernments.
Forexample:outcome[32]describeshowtheZambiaSugarcase20thatwasdevelopedincooperationwiththeGlobalTaxCampaignwasusedtolobbytheZambiagovernmenttoillustratethelossofdomesticrevenuesduetounfairtaxagreements.ThiscontributedtotheZambiangovernmentreviewingandrenegotiatingtheZambia-UKDoubleTaxationAgreement (DTA)and theZambia -IrelandDoubleTaxationAgreement (DTA)between2012and2016.
8ofthese9outcomesthatshowalinktothegloballevelwereclassifiedasmajorchanges.
Ontheregionallevel,3outcomes[22,41,45]weresupportedbytheGlobalTaxCampaign.
Here,outcome41isaniceexampleofadvocacybeingdoneatthenationalandregionallevelandevidenceusedtoadvocatewassharedbetweenthenationalandgloballevel.ThishadgreatinfluenceontheAfrican
16
9,16,17,18,21,29,32,47,50
17
Getting to good– toward corporate responsible taxbehavior,AADK,2015.https://www.ms.dk/rapport/getting-good-
toward-responsible-corporate-tax-behaviour
18
Race to thebottom-Taxcompetition inEast-Africa,AA,2012.http://www.actionaid.org/shared/tax-competition-east-
africa-race-bottom
19
Mistreated - The tax treaties that are depriving the world’s poorest countries of vital revenue, AAI, 2016.
https://www.ms.dk/rapport/mistreated
20
SweetNothing,AA,2013.http://www.actionaid.org/publications/sweet-nothings
29
HeadsofStatewho,atthe24thAfricanUnionSummit from23-31January2016 inAddisAbaba,adoptedstrong recommendations to stop illicit financial flows fromAfrica,which theyagreed to implementat thenationallevel.TheserecommendationswerecontainedinthereportbytheAfricanUnion’sandUNEconomicCommissionforAfrica’sHighLevelPanelonIllicitFinancialFlowschairedbyThaboMbeki(formerpresidentofSouthAfrica).
Twooutcomeswereidentifiedbythechangeagentasrelatingtoboththenationalandregionallevel.
Theseareoutcomesonthenationallevel,whichhadpositiveimplicationsontheregionallevel:
In 2016, the Mozambique Tax Authorities (ATM) introduced guidelines for corporates to seal alcoholicbeveragesandtobaccoproductsleavingthecountryasithadrevenueimplicationstoSouthAfrica,Swaziland,MalawiandZimbabwe.[10]In2015,NORADallocated3millionEUROsfor3yearsandOpenSocietyFoundationUSD$100,000foroneyearsallocatedfor6countries(ActionAidTanzania,Mozambique,Malawi,Nepal,EthiopiaandMyanmar)forActionAid International for theprogrammeon financing increasedgovernment investment inhighqualitypubliceducationespeciallyforgirlsthroughprogressivetaxation.[49]
Horizontallinkages:These linkagesoften tendtobeunderreported ina firstharvest,because they relate tounfunded
activitiessuchasadvisefromonenationalofficetotheother,useofbestpracticesandresearchby
anothernationaloffice.Nevertheless,theevaluatorfound13outcomesthatdemonstratehorizontal
linkages.For6oftheseoutcomes[3,4,9,51,52,53]AA/AADKhadadirectroleinfacilitatingthehorizontallearningandsharingintermsoffacilitationofexchangevisitsbetweencountries,sharing
ofresearchmodelsaswellassharingoftoolsandmodelsthroughtheAADKfacilitatedDemocratic
Governance Delegation as well as through ActionAid sharing its skills on campaigns. The other 7
outcomes[2,12,19,20,21,28,31]demonstratethatmodelsandexperiences,developedbyAAwere
sharedinforathatAADKwasnotresponsiblefor.
Conclusionandrecommendedpointsfordiscussion:Thestrongestlinkagesbetweenlevelsareinthosecaseswhereresearchreportsandcasestudies
fromtheGlobalTaxCampaignwereusedforlobbyandadvocacyonthenationalorregionallevel.
Theseledtomajorchangesinnationalgovernmentsandregionalinstitutions.
AADKcoulddiscuss:
• Is the national level where ActionAid wants to achieve most results with the Tax Justice
Programme?WhatcanAADKdotostimulateresultsontheotherlevels?
• WhatcanAADKdotostimulatehorizontallinkages?HowcanAADKmakehorizontallinkages
visualintheoutcomereporting?
• HowcanActionAidbuildonitsstrengthsinestablishinglinkagesbetweennationalandglobal
leveltoalsocreatelinkagesbetweenthelocal,nationalandgloballevel?
30
Towhatextentdotheoutcomesshowalinkbetweenprogressivetaxationandimprovedsocialservices?
TheAADKgovernanceprogrammeconsistsoftwoelements:GenderResponsivePublicServicesand
Tax Justice, where the end goal at impact level is instances of governments increasing budget
allocationsand/oractualdisbursementforpublicservicesasaresultofimplementingaprogressive
systemoftaxation.21
Notwithstandingthefact,thatresultsonimprovedsocialservicesareseenas
impact level changes for the Tax Justice Programme, AADK was interested to see if any of the
outcomeswouldshowamoredirectlinkbetweenprogressivetaxationandimprovedsocialservices.
To answer this question, the change agentswere asked to classify22
their outcomes as related to
progressivetaxationorimprovedsocialservices.
Figure11Numberofoutcomesforimprovedsocialservicesandprogressivetaxation
Themajorityoftheoutcomes,41outof53,relatetoprogressivetaxation.Onlysixoutcomesrelate
toimprovedsocialservices.Inaddition,thechangeagentsidentified6outcomesthatrelatetoboth
progressivetaxationandimprovedsocialservices.
Outcomesthatrelatetobothprogressivetaxationandimprovedsocialservices:
In 2016, theDistrictGovernment of JangamoAdministration inMozambique regularly invited the districtplatform,consistingoflocalbasedCBOsworkingonGenderResponsivePublicServices(GRPS)andTax,fordialogueonlocalleveltaxationandservicedeliveryfortheDistrictPlatforminJangamo,Inhambane.[4]In2015,theauthoritiesoftheChibutodistrictinMozambiqueestablishedaccountabilityprocedureslinkedtowastetaxesandwasteservices,whichimprovedthewastemanagementfor32,000peopleinChibutodistrict[6].
21
IndicatorfromGlobalMonitoringMatrix
22
Allclassificationwasreviewedbytheevaluator
31
In2016,thecommunitiesinNamaacha,Marracuene,Chibuto,Bilene,Jangamodistrict,Mocuba,MaganjadaCosta,Nammaroi,Inharrime,MontepuezandMocímboadaPraiainMozambique,demandedtransparencyfromtheauthoritiesinthecollectionandallocationofrevenuesfromtaxesthroughpublicdebates,inter-facemeetingswithauthoritiesandlocalmonitoring.[7]In2016,thePrimeMinisterofTanzaniaorderedtheMarinePark(AtourismunitoftheMinistryofTourism)intheMafiaDistrictofTanzaniatopay91000000-00TanzaniaShillings(USD42000-00)intaxarrearstotheMafiaDistrictCounciltoenhancetheprovisionofqualitypublicservices.[15]InNovember2015,majorwomen’srightsandtaxjusticecivilsocietyadvocates(including:theGlobalAllianceforTaxJustice;theEuropeanCommission-funded“TaxJusticeTogether”project;InternationalTradeUnionCongress;PublicServicesInternational;AssociationforWomen'sRightsinDevelopment;CentreforEconomicand Social Rights; Christian Aid; Oxfam International; Tax Justice Network UK; and National Tax PayersAssociationKenya)cametogetherforthefirsttimetoorganisethefirstTaxJusticeforWomen’sRightsGlobalDaysofAction,targetingnationalgovernmentstodemandtheyfulfiltheircommitmenttosecuringwomen’srightsandeconomicequalitybytakingactionfortaxjustice.ThedaysofactiontookplaceontheoccasionofInternationalWomen’s Day and the annual UN Commission on the Status ofWomen intergovernmentalmeetinginNewYork,from8–24March2017.[45]In2015,NORADallocated3millionEUROsfor3yearsandOpenSocietyFoundationUSD$100,000foroneyearsallocatedfor6countries(ActionAidTanzania,Mozambique,Malawi,Nepal,EthiopiaandMyanmar)forActionAid International for theprogrammeon financing increasedgovernment investment inhighqualitypubliceducationespeciallyforgirlsthroughprogressivetaxation.[48]
Outcome6 and15demonstratewell the link betweenprogressive taxation and improvedbudget
allocationsforsocialservicesorimprovedsocialservices.Outcome4exemplifieshowActionAidwas
includedindiscussionswiththedistrictgovernmentaboutprogressivetaxationandimprovedsocial
services,butdoesnotindicatethatthesocialserviceshaveactuallybeenimproved.Outcomes7and
45 describe how CSOs are demanding for progressive taxation and improved social services and
outcome48 is about funding forActionAid to improvegovernment investment in improved social
services.
The6outcomes[8,9,11,13,14,34]thatwerecategorisedasrelatingtoimprovedpublicservices
have improved public services as the entry point for engagement with ministries, government
institutionsorcommunities,linkingittotaxationasanecessaryfundingsources.
Conclusionsandrecommendedpointsfordiscussion:TheentrypointforthisOutcomeHarvestingEvaluationwasprogressivetaxation.ADDKwas
howeverinterestedtoseeiftheoutcomeswoulddemonstratealinkbetweenprogressive
taxationandimprovedsocialservices.Only2-3outcomesprovidedevidence,sothelinkdidnot
becomevisiblethroughtheoutcomes.Inthesefewcases,thelinkbetweentaxationand
improvedsocialservicesisrelativelyeasytomake(e.g.wastetaxesforwastemanagement).Most
likely,thelinkbetweentaxespaidandspecificsocialservicesbeingimprovedwillbeverydifficult
tomakeinmanycases.Thiswasalsonotedbyoneofthechangeagentsduringtheharvesting
workshop,whoemphasizedthatlinkingrevenuefrom,forexample,wastetaxdirectlytospending
onwastemanagementmaynotresultinprogressivepublicspendingbenefittingthemost
marginalized.Thespendingshouldrathercorrespondtotheprioritiesofthecommunitiesand
peopleatthereceivingend,whereitmaybedifficulttomakeadirectlinkbetweenanincreasein
taxrevenueduetoaconcretepolicychange,totheimprovementinpublicservicesatcommunity
level.
32
Therefore,AADKshouldreflectonwhetheridentifyingdirectlinkagesbetweentaxpaymentsand
improvedsocialservicesisrecommendableandapplicableorwhetherotherwaysofanalysingthe
connectionbetweentaxandimprovedpublicservicesmightbemorerelevant.
33
Overallconclusions:
The findings of this OutcomeHarvest are just one ofmany important factors to determinewhat
decisionsoractionstheuserswilltake.Thereareusuallymanyotherfactors(e.g.political,legal,public
perception,financial,programmatic)thatmustbeconsideredwhichareunknowntotheevaluator.
Consequently, evaluators of an outcome harvest can rarely make recommendations for action.
Instead,theycanrecommenddiscussionpointsaroundharvestfindingsandsupportorfacilitatethe
useofthefindingsoftheharvest.23
Specificconclusionsandrecommendedpointsfordiscussionhave
beenprovided in thesectionswith theevaluationquestionsandwillhencenotbe repeatedhere.
Since ActionAid is considering integrating Outcome Harvesting into its monitoring system,
recommendedpointsfordiscussionontheuseofOHhavealsobeenprovided.
All in all, the 53 outcomes harvested in this evaluation demonstrate that ActionAid is influencing
significantoutcomesthroughitsTaxJusticeProgramme.Itisclear,thatmanymoreoutcomescould
havebeencollectedifmoretimewouldhavebeenavailable.TheHarvestrevealed,thattheTaxJustice
Programmemainly contributed tonational governments andministriesof financebeingwilling to
collaboratewithActionAid,adoptingrecommendationsandchangingpoliciesandpracticesaround
Tax Justice. In that sense, the Tax Justice programme is mainly making progress on objective 1:
Governments make fairer/progressive tax raising rules. The contribution to these outcomes was
mainly through theTaxAdvisorswithprogrammesupportbyAADK.Theoutcomes illustrategood
examplesofresultsthatarelocallyrooted.Theseexamplescouldbeusedtobroadenthescopeof
locally rooted results. The link betweenprogressive taxation and improved social services did not
reallybecomevisiblethroughtheoutcomes.Itishoweverquestionableifitispossibletodemonstrate
this inanoutcomeevaluation.Theoutcomesdohowevershowstrong linkagesbetweendifferent
levels inthosecaseswhereresearchreportsandcasestudies fromtheGlobalTaxCampaignwere
usedfor lobbyandadvocacyonthenationalorregional level.Thefindingsalsodemonstrate, that
ActionAidisabletoworkbothatlocallevelengagingcommunities;atnationallevelandatgloballevel
influencingglobalfora–takingupissuessuchasDoubleTaxationTreaties(DTT)acrossthevarious
levels. Inaddition,theoutcomesconfirmtheactiverolethatcivilsocietycanplayatthesevarious
levels.
Asmentioned in the introduction, before the harvest, the various interventions on Tax Justice by
ActionAidwerenotseenasaprogramme.Interestingly,thisOutcomeHarvestshowsthattheresults
achieved by these various interventions are very coherent. In addition, by bringing the various
partners together, the Outcome Harvesting evaluation contributed to building amore integrated
programme approach, embracing both national and global policy and advocacy work as well as
engagement with corporates and programme work at national level. The 5 commonly agreed
objectivesweremainlybasedontheobjectivesfortheGlobalTaxCampaignprogramme,sincethe
countryprogrammesandthepolicywork inDenmarkhadveryspecificprojectbasedintermediate
objectives. In the next phase of the tax justice activities, a more integrated programme will be
developed.
ConclusionsonthevalueoftheOutcomeHarvestingapproachforActionAid:
23
Wilson-Grau,R.,Britt,H.,OutcomeHarvesting,FordFoundation,2013,p.25.
34
Untilnow,ActionAidhasmainlybeenreportingontheoutputlevelfortheTaxJusticeprogramme,
andcasesillustratingoutcomeandimpactlevel,butwithoutaclearsystematicapproachincollecting
and analysing the cases. AADK would benefit from continuing to use Outcome Harvesting as a
monitoring tool and identifying the outcome changes of the Tax Justice Programme over time.
OutcomeHarvestingwouldbeausefultoolinthissense,sincetheresultstheTaxJusticeprogramme
isaimingforareaboutbehaviouralchangeandtheapproachoftheProgrammeisnotatriedand
provenmodel. In addition, the changeagentswere really engagedduring theHarvest. Theywere
dedicatedtoworkontheiroutcomesduringtheworkshopandtoinvesttimeaftertheworkshopto
refinetheiroutcomes.Thesearegoodprerequisitesforimplementingthemethodfurther.Outcome
Harvesting couldeasilybe integrated into theexistingmonitoringproceduresofAADK. This initial
OutcomeHarvesting forms a goodbasis for discussionwithinAADKonhow to adapt themethod
furthertotheneedsoftheorganisation.