Minister of Finance Wale Edun has said that the Federal Government is targeting a 77 per cent increase in internally generated revenue, IGR.
Edun, who is also the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, stated this on Wednesday in Abuja at the opening of the 2024 Strategic Management Retreat of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, which was themed “Re-imagining Tax Administration for Equity and Economic Growth.”
According to the minister, taxes play an integral role in the government’s quest to strengthen revenue, which will help bridge the infrastructure deficit and build social safety nets that will cater to ordinary Nigerians.
He applauded the management of the FIRS for its commitment to meeting its set revenue target.
“It is commendable that the FIRS is holding this retreat at the beginning of the year to rub minds on how to increase government revenue. We are projecting a 77 per cent increase in IGR. Our revenue as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is low, below 10 per cent. It should be much higher.
“Government needs so much to spend on infrastructure and social services. The idea is to shift from expensive debts to domestic revenue mobilisation,” he said.
