Platform for Collaboration on Tax (PCT) - Tax and Development Conference in Tokyo

Concluding Statement

On 2–3 March 2026, more than 200 senior officials and experts representing around 100 countries and various international and regional organizations convened at the Platform for Collaboration on Tax (PCT) Tax and Development Conference in Tokyo. We thank the Government of Japan for hosting this meeting. This event marked the tenth anniversary of the PCT, a collaborative effort between the secretariats and staff of the IMF, OECD, UN, and World Bank Group to support countries’ efforts to strengthen Domestic Revenue Mobilization (DRM).

The Conference highlighted the essential role of modern, fair, and reliable tax systems in supporting inclusive growth and unlocking economic opportunities. Such systems can create a virtuous cycle, ensuring robust and stable domestic revenue streams to fund sustainable development priorities, strengthen fiscal resilience, and enhance state capacity.

Participants noted the persistent challenges in many countries in achieving tax revenues of 15 percent of GDP, a threshold highlighted in the 2025 PCT Report to the G20, and regarded as important for supporting economic growth, ensuring macroeconomic stability, and financing key public services. They emphasized that strengthening tax systems is an immediate priority and saw the Conference as a timely opportunity to share experiences and discuss DRM challenges and opportunities in a context of declining aid and growing pressures from a challenging international environment. Participants affirmed that countries themselves are the central actors in driving their own reform agendas. International support is most effective when it is demand-driven and country-led, well-coordinated in support of country-owned strategies, and sustained over the medium term.

The conference highlighted concrete opportunities for progress: expanding digital tax tools, improved compliance management, better use of data to shape policy, broadening tax bases by evaluating and rationalizing tax expenditures, and growing regional collaboration that supports even the smallest and most capacity-constrained tax administrations. Countries are also advancing domestic capacity on international taxation in line with national priorities, which requires stepped up and more coordinated international support to allow them to fully reap the benefits of a wide range of existing tools.

Participants underscored the role of multilateral institutions in supporting countries to strengthen their public finance systems. They expressed appreciation for the coordinated and integrated approach promoted by the PCT. Additionally, participants highlighted the importance of providing more customized and sustained assistance, particularly for fragile states and countries with limited capacity, including Small Island Developing States (SIDS).

The principals of the PCT partner organizations reaffirmed their collective commitment to strengthening collaboration on domestic revenue mobilization, supporting countries’ efforts through their distinct mandates, comparative advantages, and expertise. They pledged to strengthen collaboration and engagement with regional tax organizations, regional development banks, and other actors. They agreed that it is critical to maintain country-specific tailoring, leverage stakeholders’ synergies, and strengthen global coordination.

We leave Tokyo with renewed determination and a clear shared purpose and strategic direction in supporting countries in strengthening their tax systems.