{"id":31774,"date":"2026-04-14T07:53:32","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T05:53:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/?post_type=news&#038;p=31774"},"modified":"2026-04-14T08:04:21","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T06:04:21","slug":"only-3-of-imf-tax-advice-targets-wealth-as-billionaire-fortunes-surge-oxfam-report","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/news\/only-3-of-imf-tax-advice-targets-wealth-as-billionaire-fortunes-surge-oxfam-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Only 3% of IMF tax advice targets wealth as billionaire fortunes surge: Oxfam report"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">The findings are contained in Oxfam\u2019s report Time to Walk the Talk, released ahead of the IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington, D.C. The report analysed IMF tax guidance to 125 countries between 2022 and 2024, focusing largely on recommendations contained in Article IV consultations and programme-related policy advice.<\/div>\n<div data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\"><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Oxfam\u2019s Just Economy Lead for Africa, Francis Agbere, said the organisation examined IMF advice because of its real-world consequences for ordinary households. \u201cIMF policy advice is consequential,\u201d he told Channel Africa on Monday, arguing that the Fund\u2019s recommendations influence how much disposable income people retain, as well as outcomes linked to jobs, public services and livelihoods.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Oxfam says the issue is particularly urgent in a period of widening inequality. The organisation notes that billionaire wealth has increased by 81% since 2020, while poverty and vulnerability remain entrenched in many countries. Agbere argued that policy choices that lean heavily on regressive taxation can worsen inequality by shifting the burden onto people with the least capacity to pay.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>The report further claims that IMF advice is not consistent across income groups. Agbere said Oxfam\u2019s analysis suggests that wealthier countries are more frequently encouraged to adopt progressive tax measures, while poorer countries are often advised to rely more on regressive tools that can fall disproportionately on low-income households.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Oxfam is calling for stronger emphasis on wealth and high-income taxation, arguing that such measures can help fund essential services and reduce inequality, while protecting vulnerable groups.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Responding to concerns often raised by critics, including fears that wealth taxes could discourage investment or trigger capital flight, Agbere said tax policy must focus on outcomes. \u201cWe are not against the private sector,\u201d he said, \u201cbut enabling policy must put inequality at the centre, and those with the most wealth should contribute more.\u201d<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Oxfam said it wants global institutions to align their stated commitments on inequality with practical policy advice, particularly as governments face high debt costs and shrinking fiscal space.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>&#8211;ChannelAfrica&#8211;<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":31775,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"news-type":[78,44],"class_list":["post-31774","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-featured","news-type-finance","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"Oxfam has raised fresh questions about the International Monetary Fund\u2019s (IMF) tax policy advice, claiming that only 3% of more than 1 000 tax recommendations made by the Fund to governments in recent years focused on taxing wealth or income derived from wealth.","published_date":"","news_description":"Oxfam has raised fresh questions about the International Monetary Fund\u2019s (IMF) tax policy advice, claiming that only 3% of more than 1 000 tax recommendations made by the Fund to governments in recent years focused on taxing wealth or income derived from wealth.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/31774","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/31774\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31776,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/31774\/revisions\/31776"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31775"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31774"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=31774"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}