Visual Nudges: How Deterrence and Equity Shape Tax Compliance Attitudes and Behaviour in Rwanda

Tax administrations in low-income countries engage in a variety of interventions to improve taxpayer compliance and close their countries’ financing gap. With this aim, the Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) has implemented measures of enforcement, facilitation, and promotion of professionalism and trust in the revenue administration. Despite these efforts, the country’s tax-to-GDP ratio remains slightly below the average for sub-Saharan African countries. Thus, understanding the drivers of compliance and how to leverage them is crucial, especially since Covid-19 has exacerbated revenue needs in LICs. Remote engagement with taxpayers through mass media communication represents a promising solution, as it is a cheap option that budget-constrained revenue administrations could use to improve compliance. Our survey experiment implemented in Rwanda sheds light on the potential impact of videos as a new way to deliver tax messages. We randomly exposed over 2,000 small and medium firms filing for CIT and PIT to two information videos, and a control group, and surveyed them before and after the viewing. The videos were two-minute-long animated films on tax matters, focusing respectively on deterrence and equity of the tax system1 - which are considered two key factors explaining compliance. Using combined survey and administrative data, we identified the videos’ causal impact on the taxpayers’ perceptions and behaviours. Summary of Working Paper 145 by Celeste Scarpini, Fabrizio Santoro and Giulia Mascagni

The Promise and Limitations of Information Technology for Tax Mobilisation

As digital technologies continue gaining momentum in Africa and lower-income countries, more and more tax authorities are adopting them to improve their core functions and collect revenue more efficiently. This paper reviews recent literature on using technology for tax administration. Technology has the potential to improve tax collection in three areas: identifying the tax base, monitoring compliance, and facilitating compliance. But even the most user-friendly technology will hardly function without basic infrastructure and a stable internet connection. The potential benefits of new technology are further hampered by resistance from taxpayers and collectors, an unsupportive regulatory environment and lack of strategy for adoption by institutions. We close by proposing reforms to ensure investments in new technology improve efficiency and revenue collection. This is a summary of Working Paper 135 by Oyebola Okunogbe and Fabrizio Santoro

Use of penile shear wave elastosonography for the diagnosis of Peyronie's Disease: a prospective case-control study

Background: To evaluate the stiffness of the tunica albuginea (TA), we used a new noninvasive diagnostic technique called shear wave elastography (SWE). We determined whether SWE values are correlated with the degree of penile curvature, the time of disease onset, and pain severity experienced by patients during erection. This study analyzed the elasticity of the TA of patients with Peyronie's disease compared to that of the control group. We also analyzed any correlations between the stiffness of the cavernous bodies and the degree of curvature, time from diagnosis to curvature onset, and erectile pain severity. This was a prospective case-control study involving 100 men enrolled from September 2020 to August 2021. Participants were divided into group A (case group, n = 50), which included men with PD, with or without pain, and with penile curvature, or group B (control group, n = 50), which included healthy patients older than 18 years who visited the urology clinic for reasons other than PD. The medical history was collected for all patients who also underwent objective examination, B-mode ultrasound evaluation, and SWE. The International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-15) visual analog scale (VAS) questionnaire was administered to all participants. Results: There were no significant between-group differences regarding age, weight, and height (p > 0.05); however, there was a significant difference in the stiffness values (p < 0.05). An inverse correlation was observed between stiffness and the VAS score (p < 0.0001). A positive correlation was observed between the degree of curvature (p < 0.0001) and the time of curvature onset (p < 0.0001). The IIEF-15 scores were poorer in group A than in group B (p < 0.0001). Conclusion: SWE is an inexpensive, noninvasive method that can be used to measure the stiffness of PD patients

Digital Financial Services and Digital IDs: What Potential do They Have for Better Taxation in Africa?

New digital technologies, such as Digital Financial Services (DFS) and digital IDs, are gaining momentum in Africa and lower income countries (LICs) more broadly. These technologies could have an impact on an increasingly digitised and IT-driven tax administration, since they hold potential to improve a number of core functions of a revenue authority. Yet, increasing evidence on existing technology in tax administration indicates a number of barriers, which are likely to mute these gains. Against this background, this paper summarises critical questions relevant to research and policy to make more effective use of digital technology in contexts of weak fiscal capacity and IT development: • What is the nature and potential of DFS and digital IDs in the specific context of LICs? • Given the scarce evidence relating to DFS, digital IDs and taxation, what can be learned from how existing data and technology is used in LICs’ revenue authorities? • How can tax administrations make the best use of DFS and digital IDs in the future? This Research in Brief is a summary of ICTD Working Paper 137

Digital Financial Services and Digital IDs: What Potential do They Have for Better Taxation in Africa?

New digital technologies are now being widely used in Africa and lower-income countries (LICs). This has had an impact on tax administration, which has been increasingly digitised. Specifically Digital Financial Services (DFS) and digital IDs can improve tax administration. They have the potential to identify taxpayers more easily, communicate with them better, enforce and monitor compliance, and reduce compliance costs. While the potential is clear, existing literature indicates some of the barriers. Take-up of digital technology is still low due to barriers. Also, when taking up the technology, taxpayers often tend to adopt various measures to minimise tax payments. Within tax administrations there are challenges to accessibility and use of quality data. Mistakes can be made when launching digitisation, and there are regulatory and political barriers for effective use of digital technology. Given this context, this paper summarises key questions that are relevant for research and policy development to make more effective use of digital technology in tax administration in Africa and LICs

P3‐145: HEREDITARY SPASTIC PARAPLEGIA AND ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE: CLINICAL AND GENETIC STUDY OF A BRAZILIAN FAMILY

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Why Mass Tax Registration Campaigns Do Not Work

In recent years, policymakers and donors have become increasingly interested in the use of mass registration campaigns as a tool to expand the tax nets of lower-income countries. While registering taxpayers is common – and indeed necessary – practice for revenue authorities, these mass campaigns seek to accelerate the process. They typically work through broad-based door-to-door drives or by leveraging third-party data, such as those from national identification authorities or utility providers. Although the use of third-party data is essential to good tax administration, we argue that using them for the purpose of mass tax registration often leads to disappointment both in terms of revenue generation and taxpayer relations

KIAA1840 mutations cause ARCMT2

Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease is a group of hereditary peripheral neuropathies that share clinical characteristics of progressive distal muscle weakness and atrophy, foot deformities, distal sensory loss, as well as diminished tendon reflexes. Hundreds of causative DNA changes have been found, but much of the genetic basis of the disease is still unexplained. Mutations in the ALS5/SPG11/ KIAA1840 gene are a frequent cause of autosomal recessive hereditary spastic paraplegia with thin corpus callosum and peripheral axonal neuropathy, and account for ∼40% of autosomal recessive juvenile amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The overlap of axonal Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease with both diseases, as well as the common autosomal recessive inheritance pattern of thin corpus callosum and axonal Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease in three related patients, prompted us to analyse the ALS5/SPG11/ KIAA1840 gene in affected individuals with autosomal recessive axonal Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease. We investigated 28 unrelated families with autosomal recessive axonal Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease defined by clinical, electrophysiological, as well as pathological evaluation. Besides, we screened for all the known genes related to axonal autosomal recessive Charcot–Marie-Tooth disease (CMT2A2/HMSN2A2/ MFN2 , CMT2B1/ LMNA , CMT2B2/ MED25 , CMT2B5/ NEFL , ARCMT2F/dHMN2B/ HSPB1 , CMT2K/ GDAP1 , CMT2P/ LRSAM1 , CMT2R/ TRIM2 , CMT2S/ IGHMBP2 , CMT2T/ HSJ1 , CMTRID/ COX6A1 , ARAN-NM/ HINT and GAN/ GAN ), for the genes related to autosomal recessive hereditary spastic paraplegia with thin corpus callosum and axonal peripheral neuropathy (SPG7/ PGN , SPG15/ ZFYVE26, SPG21/ ACP33 , SPG35/ FA2H , SPG46/ GBA2 , SPG55/ C12orf65 and SPG56/ CYP2U1 ), as well as for the causative gene of peripheral neuropathy with or without agenesis of the corpus callosum ( SLC12A6 ) . Mitochondrial disorders related to Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease type 2 were also excluded by sequencing POLG and TYMP genes. An additional locus for autosomal recessive Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease type 2H on chromosome 8q13-21.1 was excluded by linkage analysis. Pedigrees originated in Italy, Brazil, Canada, England, Iran, and Japan. Interestingly, we identified 15 ALS5/SPG11/ KIAA1840 mutations in 12 families (two sequence variants were never reported before, p.Gln198* and p.Pro2212fs*5). No large deletions/duplications were detected in these patients. The novel mutations seemed to be pathogenic since they co-segregated with the disease in all pedigrees and were absent in 300 unrelated controls. Furthermore, in silico analysis predicted their pathogenic effect. Our results indicate that ALS5/SPG11/ KIAA1840 is the causative gene of a wide spectrum of clinical features, including autosomal recessive axonal Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease

Integrin αvβ3 acting as membrane receptor for thyroid hormones mediates angiogenesis in malignant T cells

The interaction of lymphoid tumor cells with components of the extracellular matrix via integrin αvβ3 allows tumor survival and growth. This integrin was demonstrated to be the membrane receptor for thyroid hormones (THs) in several tissues. We found that THs, acting as soluble integrin αvβ3 ligands, activated growth-related signaling pathways in T-cell lymphomas (TCLs). Specifically, TH-activated αvβ3 integrin signaling promoted TCL proliferation and angiogenesis, in part, via the upregulation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Consequently, genetic or pharmacologic inhibition of integrin αvβ3 decreased VEGF production and induced TCL cell death in vitro and in human xenograft models. In sum, we show that integrin αvβ3 transduces prosurvival signals into TCL nuclei, suggesting a novel mechanism for the endocrine modulation of TCL pathophysiology. Targeting this mechanism could constitute an effective and potentially low-toxicity chemotherapy-free treatment of TCL patients.Fil: Cayrol, Maria Florencia. Pontificia Universidad Católica Argentina ; ArgentinaFil: Díaz Flaqué, María Celeste. Pontificia Universidad Católica Argentina ; ArgentinaFil: Tharu, Fernando. Cornell University; Estados UnidosFil: Yang, Shao Ning. Cornell University; Estados UnidosFil: Sterle, Helena Andrea. Pontificia Universidad Católica Argentina ; ArgentinaFil: Bolontrade, Marcela Fabiana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Amorós, Mariana Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Isse, Blanca Alicia de Los Angeles G.. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia. Instituto de Química Biológica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Farias, Ricardo Norberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia. Instituto de Química Biológica; ArgentinaFil: Ahn, Haelee. Cornell University; Estados UnidosFil: Tian, Ye F.. Cornell University; Estados UnidosFil: Tabbò, Fabrizio. Cornell University; Estados UnidosFil: Singh, Ajnesh. Cornell University; Estados UnidosFil: Inghirami, Giorgio. Cornell University; Estados UnidosFil: Cerchietti, Leandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Cornell University; Estados UnidosFil: Cremaschi, Graciela Alicia. Pontificia Universidad Católica Argentina ; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica; Argentin

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London