Lawrence Nwimo

The Government of Anambra State has said plans are underway for the introduction of a more progressive tax system in 2025 to ensure equitable distribution of tax burden in the State.

Senior Special Assistant to Governor Chukwuma Soludo on IGR, Mrs Oyeka Amara Kate, disclosed this during stakeholders meeting to validate research activity carried out in (21) major markets across the three senatorial zones of the state. 

Ikengaonline reports that the research was carried out under the Tax for Service Project implemented by Tax Justice and Governance Platform (TJ&GP), Anambra State, in collaboration with the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, (CISLAC) with funding support from Oxfam Nigeria.

Mrs Oyeka, who addressed stakeholders at the event stated that the target is to reduce the tax burden on low-income traders while increasing taxes for high-income individuals in Anambra markets.

She said the system will promote fairness and equity. She also said the move is expected to generate more revenue while also reducing poverty and inequality in the state.

According to her, "We have plans to correct the imbalance in the system of tax payment. In practice today, petty traders and the rich importers pay the same amount. 

"In 2025, we expect to do things differently, and by then, we must have done proper enumeration and gotten proper statistics of everybody. We look at progressive tax where if you earn more, you pay more. It will be according to what you earn."

Continuing, she said: "Part of the things we want to do in 2025 is to make sure that our officials are identified in terms of how they appear, their ID cards, and others. People need to know exactly who our tax enforcers are and what they look like.

"Also, part of what we must ensure to intensify and to achieve in 2025 is to look for a more secure way for people to pay their tax. Where we are today is because of leakages. If the leakages were blocked immensely, we could have recorded three times what we had achieved."

The SSA called for increased partnership and collaboration of all stakeholders towards ensuring that the state gets what is due to it monthly and to be at par or even surpassed other state's revenue achievements. 

"We have to be willing to do what other states are doing. If you want our revenue to be stable or move upwards. Every stakeholder must be involved to achieve results in Anambra. Revenue generation is not a one-man thing but a collective responsibility. 

"We have noticed that the more educated our people are on tax matters, the more receptive they become to tax compliance. We have introduced a tax quiz around secondary schools and that will help us in the future."

Oyeka emphasized the importance of formalizing businesses in Anambra State, stating that over 70% of businesses in the state are informal. She cited Lagos State as an example, where over 70% of total collections come from structured organizations, generating around N55 billion from payee alone out of N900 billion in revenue. 

Earlier, Executive Director Social and Integral Development Center (SIDEC), Mrs Ugochi Ehiahuruike, emphasized that the  Tax for Service Project aims to bridge the gap between taxpayers and service providers, fostering transparency, accountability, and improved public trust in governance structures.

Ehiahuruike said "We gather to present and validate the research findings on the implementation of the Tax for Service Project in Anambra State. The research findings will guide strategic interventions to improve tax compliance and public service outcomes."

Presenting the research findings, Tax Consultant, Dr David Agu, attributed the poor IGR status of the state to the leakages in the revenue generation system. 

"Huge percent of the revenue generated from markets are diverted into private pockets. If we can improve on the leakages and sensitize our people to be using USSD code to pay their taxes, Anambra would achieve more," Dr Agu said.

In their reactions, stakeholders, including representatives of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), private sector leaders, civil society actors, and community leaders, called on the government to take decisive action. 

They urged the government to put an end to the activities of fake revenue agents, which are contributing to multiple taxation in markets. They also advocated for the effective utilization of revenues generated within the state to benefit all citizens.