The Federal Government has set a tax revenue target of N19.4tn for 2024.

This is as the Federal Inland Revenue Service collected a record N12.37tn in tax revenue for the federation in 2023, surpassing the year’s target of N10.7tn.

According to the chairman, FIRS, Dr Zacch Adedeji, the new target is achievable because of an effective tax collection system and a viable economic environment for businesses to prosper.

Giving a breakdown of the figures, one of the agency’s coordinating directors, Mrs Amina Ado, disclosed that oil revenue accounted for N3.17tn of the total, representing 25.6 per cent, while non-oil revenue was 74.4 per cent at N9.2tn.

According to a statement signed by Special Adviser on Media to the FIRS chairman, Dare Adekanmbi, the disclosure was made at the opening of a two-day strategic management retreat of the agency held at the Congress Hall of Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja, on Wednesday.

The agency noted that its initial tax target of N10.7tn for 2023 was reviewed upwards to N11.5tn by the agency because of the exchange rate.

Commenting on 2024’s target, FIRS’s chairman, Adedeji said, “What determines whatever we have comes from micro-economic indices because when the economy runs well, we are going to be taxing prosperity, not poverty.

“We will focus on the fruits and not the seeds. We need to ensure we have that viable economic environment that will lead to economic prosperity. And for us at FIRS, it is just to put the system in place to aid effective collection.

“We are not a revenue-generating agency, but a revenue-collection agency. With the plan of President Bola Tinubu to rejuvenate the economy, companies are going to grow and prosper,” he said.

In his goodwill message, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, stressed the need for an increase in tax revenue to enable the government to discharge its responsibilities to the citizenry.

He said, “First of all, I commend the FIRS chairman and the rest of his team for coming together right from the beginning of the financial year to come to rub minds and put up a strategy for increasing tax revenue.

“Tax revenue in Nigeria is low. The collection level should be much higher as we have seen in other African countries not to talk of the developed countries. It is at 10 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) when at the highest level, it goes around 55 per cent.

“What the chairman and his team have done is build on already-established performance. In 2023, FIRS met his financial target and even surpassed it. But they need to do more. And that is what the chairman and his team will be discussing for the two days to make sure they finalize plans to substantially increase internally generated revenue.”

In her own goodwill message, the Accountant-General of the Federation, Dr Oluwatoyin Madein, lauded the FIRS for contributing 70 per cent of the total revenues for the federation.

Nigeria has been making moves to increase its tax revenues. During his 2024 budget presentation, President Tinubu said, “We are currently reviewing our tax and fiscal policies. Our target is to increase the ratio of revenue to GDP from less than 10 per cent currently to 18 per cent within the term of this Administration. The government will make efforts to further contain financial leakages through effective implementation of key public financial management reforms.”