Competition Authority and the Botswana Unified Revenue Service Enhance Cooperation Through MoU

The Competition Authority and the Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) which cements their relationship and formalises cooperation in fulfilling their respective mandates. Speaking at the signing ceremony on 28^th June 2017, the leaders of the two organisation highlighted the timely sharing of credible and quality information as a key element that will be facilitated by the MoU.

In her remarks, the Acting CEO of the Competition Authority, Ms. Tebelelo Pule, said the CA will access credible data from BURS on company figures such as turnover for the purpose of calculating market shares, enabling it to understand the market structure and make informed decisions with respect to the effect of anti-competitive mergers and acquisitions and other restrictive business practices. ‘’Turnaround times for the Authority’s decision making is very critical for enterprises and the business community’’ she said.

Ms. Pule further noted that the partnership between the  CA and BURS will not only improve the quality and speed of decision making, but will also save Government resources deployed when the two organisations execute their mandates. 

For his part, the Commissioner General of BURS, Mr. Ken Morris, said in view of the key mandates of the two organisations it is necessary to collaborate in order to serve the interests of Batswana better, noting that it is critical for either party to request information from another to validate the submissions made by companies. ‘’This MoU therefore sets in motion a formal and predictable framework that will allow us to exchange information that is mutually beneficial to the parties.’’

Morris further said the signing of the MoU is in line with what is happening on the international front, where owing to emerging developments such as tax base erosion and profit shifting by multinationals, more countries collaborate to sign exchange information frameworks in order to protect their tax base. ‘’This points to the need to open up even more within the local environment to share information,’’ he said.

Both leaders emphasised that the confidentiality of information received from individuals and enterprises will be preserved by the CA and BURS.

BURS has been established to, among others, undertake tax assessments and collection on behalf of the Government of Botswana, and to take appropriate measures to counteract tax evasion and to ensure high levels of taxpayer compliance. The Competition Authority on the other hand has been set-up to prevent and redress anti-competitive practices in the economy, and to remove constraints on the free play of competition in the Botswana market.