Taxand broadens its advisory services network to include Africa
Taxand (the global network of exclusively tax firms of which Garrigues is the founding member) has expanded its operations to take in Africa. The firm has played a pivotal role in this project thanks to its offices in Morocco, managed by the partner José Ignacio García.
Doing business in Africa can pose a real challenge: the tax and legal systems are fragmented and tax treaties are not always interpreted according to the letter of the law or international principles. Moreover, companies operating on the continent are often hard pressed to identify which laws they are supposed to follow. Nevertheless, Africa offers excellent investment opportunities in the natural resources, metals and oil industries, as well as in the telecommunications sector.
To overcome these problems, Taxand has assembled a team of professionals with extensive knowledge of the local landscape and a wealth of international experience. Taxand is thus able to offer a comprehensive advisory service specifically targeted at companies looking to set up or expand their businesses in Africa.
The team is made up of lawyers qualified in English law, French law and OHADA (Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa) business laws, alongside Portuguese-speaking lawyers able to provide assistance in Portuguese-speaking countries and lawyers with a command of Cantonese and Mandarin Chinese, focused on China’s entry and expansion strategy in Africa.
The tax advisory service in Africa is coordinated from two centers of operations: the Sub-Saharan and the North African centers. The former is managed by the South African firm ENSafrica (the largest and one of the oldest firms on the continent) and the latter by Garrigues Maroc.
The Taxand Africa team travels across the entire region, meeting with, and coordinating the work of, local firms with the most notable practitioners in each country, with a view to offering the hands-on approach grounded in local law which is critical to this region.
Garrigues Tax Department