"Mining companies have long ensured that they pay as little tax as possible to the countries that own such resources. As a result, the citizens of mineral-rich countries continue to live in poverty," says report editor Kato Lambrechts.
"Breaking the Curse: How Transparent Taxation and Fair Taxes Can Turn Africa's Mineral Wealth into Development" spotlights mining taxation and transparency in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Malawi, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zambia.
The report estimates that Ghana, where gold accounts for 90 percent of exports, lost nearly $400 million in potential revenues between 1990 and 2007 due to tax allowances and "lack of expertise in the revenue collection authority.
" Meanwhile, "in Tanzania, no mining company, other than AngloGold Ashanti, had paid corporate income tax by the end of 2008 -- ten years after industrial mining began in the country."