The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, says the implementation of the 7.5 per cent Value Added Tax (VAT) will take effect from Feb. 1.
Ahmed disclosed this in Abuja on Thursday during the inauguration of the Chairman and Board members of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
She said: “We planned that going forward, the annual budget will always be accompanied by Finance Bills to enable the realisation of revenue projections.
“Future Finance Bills will therefore, provide us with additional opportunities to incrementally improve the fiscal policy and regulatory and legal environment.
“This is in order to further strengthen our domestic capital market, and ultimately ensure sustained and inclusive growth and development.”
Ahmed urged the new board to ensure steadfastness of the service in meeting non-oil revenue targets to accelerate the nation’s development.
She said supervision of the FIRS was one of the responsibilities of the board.
In his remarks, the FIRS Executive Chairman, Mr. Muhammad Nami, noted that the new board had dedicated itself to the task at hand.
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“As a tax administrator and custodian of the Nigerian tax system, we have the responsibility to the nation to implement all tax policies and laws in a manner that would ensure optimal benefits to the nation,” he said.
He said FIRS had a duty to strengthen, withstand and overcome the challenges that were ahead of it.
Nami promised to rebuild FIRS institutional framework, robust collaboration with stakeholders, as well as build a customer taxpayer centric institution and data centric institution.
Members of the board are Mr. Muhammad Nami, the Executive Chairman of the FIRS, Mr. James Ayuba (North-Central), Mr. Ado Danjuma (North-West), Mr. Adam Mohammed (North-East), Mr. Ikeme Osakwe (South-East), Mr. Adewale Ogunyomade (South-West) and Mr. Ehile Aibangbee (South-South).
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that members of boards of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the Federal Government were also inaugurated.
They are Ladidi Mohammed, Attorney-General of the Federation Office and Mr. Folashodun Shonubi, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The membership also include Hajiya Fatima Hayatu (Ministry of Finance), Mr. Samuel Maagebe (Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission), and Mr. Umar Ajiya (Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation).
Others include DCG Mairo Isah of the Nigeria Customs Servic (NCS) and Mr. Garba Abubakar, Registrar-General of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).
