Lagos to increase tax net to 10m payers by 2018, says Commissioner

Lagos State Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Mr. Akinyemi Ashade has revealed that the state government in 2016 expended the sum of N291bn on infrastructural development.

This is even as he stated that an estimated 10 million tax payers would be hit by 2018 as against the present five million tax payers to further increase the state’s internally generated revenue for more development projects.

Ashade, who disclosed this while delivering account of stewardship of his ministry’s activities and achievements in the last one year at the 2017 ongoing ministerial press briefing at Alausa, Ikeja, said the amount the state is spending on capital projects was justifiable as the impact is felt on the people.

He said the projects are borne out of the administration’s desire to drive the implementation and execution of projects and programmes that will lead to the good performance of the budget and encourage focus on patronage of local contractors which would improve job creation.

Speaking on the 2016 budget breakdown, the commissioner explained that “the budget performance for Y2016 closed at 80 percent, with a total revenue N436.328bn while total internally generated revenue was N312.830bn and a capital expenditure ratio of 55:45.

Responding on how the state could meet the estimated 10 million tax payers, considering massive job losses recorded in most sectors following the recent recession, Ashade said with the Employment Trust Fund the state established to finance small and medium-scale enterprises, more people would be empowered and consequently pay their taxes.

He added that with the enabling environment for ease of doing business that the governor is putting in place, more foreign investors would be wooed hence to contribute to the IGR.

He assured that the ministry would continue to manage the economy of the state through prudent and stringent management of available resources as well as deploying international best practice models and reforms for effective mobilisation, planning, allocation and utilisation of resources.

This according to him would stimulate the N50bn monthly revenue projection for 2018 contrary to the N30bn monthly revenue being realised in 2017.

He added: “Transformation of Lagos State into the desired third largest global economic financial hub and Africa’s model megacity through improvement on the various reforms aimed at improving revenue collections in various revenue agencies will continue unabated.”