The Minister of Finance, Wale Edun has stated that the government is not seeking to increase the tax rate.
The minister stated this on Monday while appearing before the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations.
A member of the House, Iduma Igariwey, said the lawmakers and other Nigerians are worried about the plan by the government to increase tax revenue to GDP.
Responding, the minister said the government wants more people to pay taxes, and has no plans to increase the tax rate.
He explained that the government hopes to use tax reductions in the future to attract more investment, both domestic and foreign.
“There is no plan for an increase in tax rate as such. The plan is to increase the revenue from taxation. The plan is to increase taxation returns as a percentage of tax to GDP from around 9 per cent as it is now to 18 per cent in three years. This is closer to the African average,” he said.
It would be recalled that the current administration is targeting an 18 per cent Tax-Revenue-GDP ratio.
Edun said the government is eager to ensure the effective collection of taxes and blockage of leakages.
“The emphasis is on raising revenue,” he added.
The minister appeared before the Committee to defend the N27.5 trillion budget before the National Assembly.
