OUR COMPANY PROFILE
EMPOWERMENT THROUGH TAX TRAINING
WHAT IS CAPABUILD
WHO WE ARE
Capabuild is a Dutch foundation under Dutch company law, non-profit driven and fully independent. Capabuild’s management is in the hands of an executive board with Gitte Heij and Jan van Trigt. Both offer extensive experience in tax and development. A supervisory board oversees the executive board which includes Attiya Waris and Theo Groeneveld. Capabuild also works with a team of experts in charge of project management, production, training and education.
The Capabuild Project is a public private initiative, assisting developing countries to build and develop their tax academies and tax programs with the purpose of increasing tax revenue and improving their investment climate. For sustainable progress in developing countries, a solid flow of taxes paid to governments is of strategic importance. Education, infrastructure, and health care cannot be financed without a solid flow of taxes.
This is called mobilisation of domestic resources. The challenge is how to grow the tax revenues while also growing the economy?
Adequate tax legislation and a good functioning of tax administrations is key for sustainable growth. The Covid-19 crisis has increased this urgent need.
The preferred format for CapaBuild is sustaining a Public-Private-Partnership structure which has proven up until now to be an optimal arrangement.
Capabuild works on projects targeting problems and utilizing opportunities that are in both the public and private domain, which are also fully aligned with the resolution of the Third International Conference on Finance and Development (Addis Ababa 2015) and the sustainable development goal 17 on partnership. Moreover, PPP activities and investments exceed the short-term interest of one single organisation and therefore might have a more sustainable effect. In the difficult months during the Covid crisis in 2020 the PPP attributes of Capabuild has proven its strength, agility and resilience. Together with the help of participating corporate sponsors, trainers and facilitators we were able to redesign our delivery model through embracing new technologies. The organisational resilience of Capabuild and willingness to embrace change was able to accelerate the delivery of trainings. As well as bringing in the perspectives of private enterprise,Capabuild acknowledges that tax authorities in the partner countries prefer cooperating with organisations that have the full support and, preferably, involvement of a donor Government.
To ensure this partnership is embedded in its operations, CapaBuild is set-up with involvement of MNEs and knowledge centers such as IBFD and the Committee on Fiscal Studies, University of Nairobi, Kenya. It is supported by the Dutch government on the supply side, and through developing partners on the demand side. Such a mechanism assumes that all parties would contribute financially, but also in terms of knowledge, logistical support and other resources.
The countries chosen are in line with criteria originally agreed upon with the partners:
- Interest of public and private partners in CapaBuild’s operational goals;
- availability of reasonable infrastructure in the target country;
- relatively stable political situation;
- reasonable functioning of public institutions;
- economies with potential growth and increasing FDI;
- partner countries in the driver seat for the activities to be undertaken.
AN INTRODUCTION TO
OUR PEOPLE
Cecilia Abigail
Cecilia Abigail is the office manager of Capabuild. She was born in Jakarta, Indonesia and spent most of her working life in Indonesia, one of the main countries that Capabuild is working with. She graduated from the London School of Public Relations in Jakarta in 2009. After her graduation she has worked for several large multinationals, whilst also gaining experience in promoting sustainable entrepreneurship. Upon her arrival in The Netherlands in 2020, she commenced her work with Capabuild. Her culturally and linguistically diverse background adds immense value to our team.
Paul Maurits de Haan
Paul de Haan is an international tax expert and the initiator and the co-founder of Capabuild. For more than two decades he worked for PwC, where he served as a European tax and legal engagement partner for multinationals; provided design and guidance of global business transformations, acquisitions and mergers; and was the leader of both the Tax Energy group and the Ebiz group PwC Europe. For PwC Europe, he founded the EU Direct Tax group (EUDTG), coordinating European Tax Initiatives, and the European Business Initiative on Tax (EBIT). From 2008 to 2014, Mr de Haan worked as a consultant to PwC, with a focus on the non-profit sector, ethics and taxation, and corporate social responsibility. He is an experienced teacher and trainer.