Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) for the 36 member states of the federation increased by N360 billion over two years.
From N1.31 trillion in 2019 to N1.67 trillion in 2021, they increased IGR.
Gov. Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti, the chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), made the announcement on Monday in Abuja at the 8th IGR Peer Learning Event and the introduction of the NGF Public Finance Database.
According to him, from 31% in 2019 to 35% in 2021, the states’ total recurring revenue portion of IGR increased.
Fayemi credited the improvement to the states’ deliberate changes in their tax management.
Fayemi noted that partnerships and support have made sure that states maintained their implementation plans and delivered comprehensive changes that produced the desired results.
However, he asserted that in order to keep ahead of evasion and avoidance strategies, state governments occasionally need to adapt to the rapidly changing tax environment.
He continued by saying that the dynamics around private income that are evolving require attention.
He highlighted the factors, which included the depreciation effect of growing inflation, structural changes in employment, commercial transactions, and investment spurred by technological advancement.
Fayemi counseled his fellow governors to look for measures to increase their tax bases and enhance the database of taxpaying citizens.
He stated that doing so would need to put an end to the growth of databases and taxpayer identification numbers.
In order to increase transparency in tax revenues as well as throughout the entire treasury, the chairman urged the Joint Tax Board to address the issue of insufficient information sharing between states.
He said that the database, which was introduced at the event, would make it simple for users to filter and analyze financial data and information on the states.
Fayemi expressed optimism that the reforms would be carried through by the governors’ successors.
Asishana Okauru, the NGF’s director general, gave the assurance that the Forum would continue to actively participate in mainstreaming tax programs through advocacy.
He claimed that comparable annual data on government expenditure, receipts, and funding in every state of the union will be available on the tax database portal.
