Women Cross Border Traders’ Participation in Tax Rulemaking Processes

Abstract

abstract The Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA) mandates States in para 165(n) to establish mechanisms and other forums to enable women entrepreneurs and women workers to contribute to the formulation of policies and programmes being developed by economic ministries and financial institutions. This article investigates the nature of women cross border traders’ participation in tax rulemaking processes in Malawi in relation to Malawi’s obligation under the BPfA. The investigation was important because the majority of women cross border traders are in informal trade mainly due to unfriendly tax rules. The article argues that women’s participation in tax rulemaking would facilitate the incorporation of their trade related gender needs and usher them into formal cross border trade. Women’s participation in tax rulemaking would address the concerns raised by the BPfA which highlighted inequalities in economic structures and policies in all forms of productive activities and urged governments to facilitate women’s access to trade and markets. The article draws from empirical data from a study that was conducted on the nature and challenges of women’s participation in tax rulemaking in Malawi. The research finds that women’s participation in tax rulemaking is almost non-existent. The minimal participation is due to an ambiguous, centralised and oddly structured tax rulemaking process. As such, it is only the bureaucrats and the elite participating who are mostly men. The article proposes a legal restructuring of the tax rulemaking process by adopting a civic republicanism approach to rulemaking. Civic republicanism facilitates the incorporation of informal and locally accepted ways and methods of rulemaking familiar to marginalised groups such as women.