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Shore Up Your Tax Revenue, ECOWAS Members Urged

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15 years ago

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Alhaji Mohammed Daramy, Commissioner of Trade, Customs and Free Movement, ECOWAS Commission, has urged countries within ECOWAS to shore up tax revenue to attain macro-economic stability.  

Daramy gave the advice at the 12th annual tax conference, organised by the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria CITN) on Friday in Abuja.

He spoke on sustainability of tax revenue for global economic stability.

Daramy said that with the gradual recovery from the global economic crisis, governments within the region were faced with decreasing revenue.

He said that the theme of the conference: “Tax harmonisation for regional integration’’, was appropriate at this time when ECOWAS had renewed its commitment to ensuring all policies within the region were harmonised.

Daramy said that in terms of performances, many ECOWAS states had not been able to substantially increase their tax revenues to reflect in their gross domestic product (GDP).

“Between 2001 and 2009, not more than two ECOWAS-member states satisfied the ECOWAS tax yield criterion of not less than two per cent.

“As at June 2009, only Cape Verde and Ghana met the criterion by recording 22.7 per cent and 23.3 per cent respectively,” he added.

Daramy said that the remaining 13 countries, including Nigeria, recorded a revenue and GDP ratio of less than 20 per cent.

 ”In the case of Nigeria, the tax revenue and GDP ratio declined from 19.5 per cent in 2001 to 11 per cent in June, 2009,’’ Daramy said.

He said that to make the Nigerian economy stronger, the support which taxation gave to growth and financial stability must be strengthened.

He added that to address the challenges, CITN should develop an enduring tax system where voluntary compliance would be the hallmark.

He stressed that to ensure voluntary compliance, the Nigerian tax authorities should provide strong support to individuals and businesses to contain non-compliance.

Our correspondent reports that the conference could not hold on Thursday, due to the death of President Umaru Yar’Adua who died on Wednesday in Abuja at the age of 58.

Our correspondent also reports that about 800 tax professionals and the chairmen of internal revenue service in the 36 states of the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory are attending the conference.

The conference, which started on Tuesday, May 3 ends on May 7

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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2 days ago

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September 22, 2025

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Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.

Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.

The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.

Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.

“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.

“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”

Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.

In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.

Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.

Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.

 

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NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

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2 days ago

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September 22, 2025

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The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure during an inspection of the Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja, last Thursday.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
According to him, the centralised production system aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for improved service delivery.
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FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

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2 days ago

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September 22, 2025

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The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) platforms across key sectors of the economy, starting in early 2026.
Director of E-Government and Digital Economy at NITDA, Dr. Salisu Kaka, made the disclosure in Abuja during a stakeholder review session of the DPI and NGDX drafts at the Digital Public Infrastructure Live Event.
The forum, themed “Advancing Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure through Standards, Data Exchange and e-Government Transformation,” brought together regulators, state governments, and private sector stakeholders to harmonise inputs for building inclusive, secure, and interoperable systems for governance and service delivery.
According to Kaka, Nigeria already has several foundational elements in place, including national identity systems and digital payment platforms.
What remains is the establishment of the data exchange framework, which he said would be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Before the end of this year and by next year we will be fully ready with the foundational element, and we start dropping the use cases across sectors,” Kaka explained.
He stressed that the federal government recognises the autonomy of states urging them to align with national standards.
“If the states can model and reflect what happens at the national level, then we can have a 360-degree view of the whole data exchange across the country and drive all-of-government processes,” he added.
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