Poor non-oil revenue’ll continue unless infrastructure, access to capital are in place—Expert
Development experts have started reacting to the recent comments by the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, during a Finance Ministers’ meeting convened by the G24 Group at the ongoing IMF/World Bank Spring meetings in Washington DC.
The minister had said advised Nigerians to focus on non-oil revenue growth, tax compliance and budget transparency to drive economic development in the country.
She discussed strategies to drive non-oil revenue growth and achieve inclusive growth in Nigeria.
In an interview with Dr. Salaudeen Adeniyi, he said “It was embarrassing for a minister of finance of a country to go to America and challenge Nigerians to focus on non-oil revenue growth, tax compliance and budget transparency to drive economic development in the country, knowing full well that their possibilities are dependent on the provision of enabling environment by the government”.
“How can non-oil revenue grow when forex are not accessible for manufacturers and ease of doing business is elusive?
“What concerns ordinary Nigerians with budget transparency?
“I think going to US only to stay there and advice herself does not show administrative ingenuity.
He said Nigerians are tired hearing about what government is going to do and stressed that “All we want now is to start seeing the productivity of policies.
Adeniyi said “The reason for the unacceptably low level of non-oil revenue is government’s poor attention to the development of non-oil sectors”.
Mrs. Adeosun had revealed at the World Bank summit that “Revenue mobilisation is critical to the success of Nigeria’s economic reform agenda,” stressing that “We have an unacceptably low level of non-oil revenue and much of that is driven by a failure to collect tax revenues”.
“With a tax to GDP ratio of only six percent, one of the lowest levels in the world, we have a lot of work to do if we are going to build a sustainable revenue base that will deliver inclusive growth.
