The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) raised concerns on Monday about the low contribution of Value Added Tax (VAT) to Nigeria’s tax revenue. ECOWAS attributed the shortfall to policy decisions and a weak compliance rate. Salifou Tiemtore, ECOWAS Director of the Customs Union and Taxation, voiced these concerns in Abuja during a workshop on VAT tax expenditure for Nigeria. The workshop was organized by the ECOWAS Commission as part of the Support Programme for Tax Transition in West Africa, which aims to improve domestic tax management and enhance coordination of taxation across ECOWAS and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) regions.
Tiemtore praised the Federal Inland Revenue Service for its 2022 performance, noting a total tax collection of N10.1 trillion, with non‑oil taxes accounting for 59 percent of the total. However, he highlighted that VAT contributed only 25 percent of the collection, a decline from the 47.1 percent share recorded in 2021. He recalled a recommendation from a regional seminar in Abidjan on “Management of tax incentives in West Africa and definition of the reference tax system in terms of VAT,” which urged member states to submit tax expenditure evaluation reports to the ECOWAS and UEMOA Commissions by the end of March of the year following the evaluation. “I want to believe that the stakeholders would have put up this report if not for the general elections in Nigeria, but now you have the opportunity,” Tiemtore said. “I therefore encourage all participants to work assiduously to ensure that this report is not only ready but transmitted to ECOWAS before the end of March 2023.”
Representing the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Minister Zainab Ahmed was present through the Director of Technical Services, Fatima Hayatu. Hayatu lamented that, despite successive administrations in Nigeria showing a strong desire to fund public services, critical infrastructure, and security, persistent revenue challenges continue to hinder these commitments.
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