“FG to Boost Tax Collection by 20 Per Cent” – Budget Minister

The federal government plans to increase tax collection by 20 per cent in order to fund the deficit in the 2016 budget, Minister of Budget and Planning Udoma Udo Udoma said on Thursday, January 28.

Udoma, who stressed that the government does not want to increase the suffering of Nigerians, he said that the government will increase corporate tax and Value Added Tax (VAT) collections.

The Minister, spoke with State House reporters after the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

He was accompanied by Governors Akinwunmi Ambode (Lagos) Willy Obiano (Anambra) and Badaru Abubakar (Jigawa).

Ambode said Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole gave an update to the Council on NEC’s Ad-Hoc Committee on the management of the Excess Crude Account and payment into the Federation Account.

According to him, the Ad-hoc Committee submitted a memo for approval on its findings which included 81 government revenue generating agencies identified for forensic auditing while 18 core revenue generating agencies like the NNPC to be audited by KPMG, an international audit firm.

He said that other revenue generating agencies would also be forensically audited by SIAO, a local auditing firm. Council, he said, approved engaging of the forensic auditors.

Udoma said: “We expect about 20% increase in VAT collection, which is conservative in terms of our revenue projections. We are expecting much more than that. Occasionally we try to be conservative.

“With reference to the budget, one thing we are determined not to do is to cut any of those capital projects, because we need them to stimulate the economy. We are going to work with the National Assembly, to see how we can get savings.

“One of the areas we are looking at is our cash call elements. The minister of state for petroleum (Ibe Kachikwu) is looking at how we can cut our cash call elements which is about N1trillion by innovative financing.

“So he is discussing with some oil companies and looking for some innovative financing which might pick up some of the financing so that we reduce our financial output and contribution by the federal government.

“That will be a major saving which can be used to plug the gap particularly with falling oil prices. In addition some of the capital projects, the various ministers for infrastructure are looking at how we can get private sector funding for some of them.