TAX GOVERNANCE AND BUSINESS COMPETITIVENESS IN EMERGING ECONOMIES

We examine how fiscal governance structures shape firm competitiveness in emerging economies by developing and empirically testing the Tax Governance Competitiveness Model using a structured dataset covering corporate firms operating in Ghana between 2020 and 2025. We combine institutional governance indicators, corporate taxation metrics, and competitiveness measures derived from international datasets and national fiscal records to estimate relationships between transparency in tax policy, enforcement intensity, and administrative efficiency under varying regulatory conditions. Empirical estimation shows that improvements in fiscal transparency, credible compliance enforcement, and efficient tax administration significantly enhance firm productivity, investment attraction, market expansion, and international trade performance. The results also show that the institutional regulatory environment strengthens these effects by amplifying the responsiveness of firms to fiscal governance reforms. Our contribution lies in integrating three fiscal governance mechanisms within a single competitiveness framework and demonstrating that operational efficiency within tax administration exerts a particularly strong influence on corporate performance outcomes. The findings provide globally relevant insights for governments seeking to design taxation systems that stimulate investment, productivity growth, and international market participation.