Nigeria has again called on the United Nations and the in­ternational tax community to forge an inclusive, equitable, fair and universally beneficial international tax system to­wards the attainment of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Making the call on behalf of the country, Mr. Muhammad Nami, the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), stated this while delivering Nigeria’s statement at the Economic and Social Coun­cil (ECOSOC) Special Meeting on International Cooperation in Tax Matters, held on Friday, at the ECOSOC Chamber, Unit­ed Nations Headquarters, New York.

Mr. Nami noted that the Ni­gerian delegation is concerned about the global minimum tax as put forward by the OECD – In­clusive Framework, because of its low rate and the way it was negotiated to benefit the home countries of multinationals.

“My delegation is concerned about the global minimum tax,” Mr. Nami noted, “because of its low rate and the way it was negotiated to benefit the home countries of multinationals, which are mostly in developed countries.”

Speaking further, the head of Nigeria’s apex tax authority urged the meeting to discuss how “a UN instrument on tax cooperation can both build on work that has already been done in a way that guarantees fairness and equity.”

He also said that Nigeria looks forward to views on “en­forcement mechanisms for a binding multilateral tax con­vention, noting the challenges that developing and developed countries have experienced with investment treaty arbitration.”

Mr. Muhammad Nami, in the country’s statement, pointed out that the capacity of countries to attain the 2030 Sustainable De­velopment Goals were hinged on having the requisite funding “in delivering critical public ser­vices” towards these SDGs.

Nigeria, while calling for a global taxation regime under the United Nations, harped on the importance of enhancing domestic resource mobilisation among member states to address their economic challenges.

“The promotion of inclusive international tax cooperation remains a critical subject in the attainment of the 2030 Sustain­able Development Goals (SDGs).

“Today a global taxation re­gime under the UN is urgently needed to enable states effective­ly mobilise domestic revenues to address the multiple economic and other crises impacting our efforts in the achievement of the 2030 SDGs.

“Domestic public resource mobilisation is critical to this ef­fort because of its vital role in de­livering critical public services and advancing even progress towards the sustainable devel­opment agenda.

“Developing countries are taking seriously the challenge of financing sustainable de­velopment. My delegation un­derscores the importance of enhancing domestic resource mobilisation, good governance and investment in our common African goal embodied in the Agenda 2063, and in the global goals spelled out in the 2030 Agenda,” Mr. Nami stated.

He further commended Afri­can countries for strengthening their participation in interna­tional tax cooperation efforts, as well as the strides they have made “in closing loopholes and countering base erosion and profit shifting.”

He, however, expressed con­cerns that “while much good work has been done, much more remains to be made towards a fully inclusive process, both do­mestically and internationally and ensuring that all taxpayers are making their fair contribu­tions.”