Published: July 17, 2026
MONROVIA — With Liberia’s first Value Added Tax less than 18 months away, the Liberia Revenue Authority has sent a high-level delegation to Zambia to study the digital systems it will need to collect it.
The five-day benchmarking mission in Lusaka, sponsored by the African Tax Administration Forum, has LRA officials examining the Zambia Revenue Authority’s digital tax administration and modernization strategies ahead of the VAT regime scheduled to take effect Jan. 1, 2027, one of Liberia’s most significant tax policy reforms in recent years.
Commissioner for Domestic Tax Margaret P. Krote leads the delegation, which includes Assistant Commissioner for Customs Ports Operations Edwin F. Kendema, Assistant Commissioner for Transformation and Modernization Robert S. Kamei Jr. and other senior officials. Officials from the Malawi Revenue Authority, Revenue Services Lesotho and ATAF are also taking part, allowing participating countries to exchange experiences from Zambia’s digital transformation of its revenue administration.
The delegation is reviewing Zambia’s integrated digital tax ecosystem, including the TaxOnline platform, the Smart Invoice electronic invoicing system, data analytics capabilities, information technology infrastructure and technology governance. The platforms allow taxpayers to register electronically, file returns online, make electronic payments, verify tax documents and issue electronic invoices, systems officials say have improved efficiency, compliance and transparency.
Krote described the mission as a milestone in the LRA’s digital transformation agenda.
“As Liberia prepares to implement Value Added Tax and expand digital tax services, it is essential that we learn from revenue administrations that have successfully undertaken similar reforms,” Krote said.
She said the visit will yield practical lessons for adopting internationally proven approaches while strengthening institutional capacity and taxpayer services, and will support efforts to increase voluntary compliance, streamline collection and build an administration capable of responding to a rapidly evolving digital economy.
LRA officials have repeatedly said digital systems will be central to a successful VAT launch by simplifying registration, filing and payment for businesses and individual taxpayers. The Authority has in recent months rolled out taxpayer education campaigns, staff capacity-building programs and IT infrastructure investments, and officials argue a robust digital administration will cut costs, curb evasion and strengthen the revenue needed to finance national development and reduce dependence on external financing.
Zambia has emerged as one of Africa’s leading examples of digital tax administration, making it a frequent learning destination as revenue authorities across the continent adopt technology to improve efficiency, reduce fraud and expand the tax base. ATAF supports such reforms through technical assistance, peer learning and benchmarking visits among African revenue administrations.
The Zambia experience is expected to inform future LRA reforms in electronic invoicing, taxpayer services, digital compliance monitoring, data-driven administration and technology governance.
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