Sustainable Taxation and The Challenges of AchievingSustainable Development in Developing Countries
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: This paper explored how modern tax theory conceptualizes the role of taxation in achieving sustainable development through a critical analysis of contemporary tax frameworks, which have remained the subject of considerable academic and policy debate. The paper highlighted the limited capacity of existing sustainable tax systems to make a meaningful contribution to sustainable development initiatives. It also analyzed the problems and challenges confronting tax systems in developing countries, which create additional obstacles beyond those experienced by developed nations. The paper further examined the specific difficulties that developing countries have encountered in aligning their tax systems with the Sustainable Development Goals. These nations not only shared common global challenges but also grappled with additional, localized obstacles rooted in economic, social, and environmental instability. In response, the paper proposes Voluntary Sustainability Taxes (VSTs) as a potential mechanism for addressing the key barriers that impede sustainable development, particularly within the context of developing economies. Recognizing the complex crises that had affected these nations, the study argued for the diversification of tax structures to include nontraditional, incentive-based tools. It concluded by analyzing the theoretical and practical justifications for adopting VSTs and evaluating their potential to enhance the responsiveness of tax systems to the imperatives of sustainable development.
DOI: 10.14419/dba1zc60
Authors: Alshujairi Mohammed Huweish A., Alkurtani Khaldoun Salman M., Saleh Ammar Abdelqader
Institution: Iraqi University
Topic: Economic and Fiscal Studies
Subfield: Economics and Econometrics
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W4417525259
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