Informal sector vital to Nigeria’s economy, says FIRS chairman
The Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Zacch Adedeji, has stated that President Bola Tinubu is deeply concerned about the welfare of Nigeria’s informal sector operators, who represent a significant portion of the country’s labour force.
A statement from the FIRS said Adedeji spoke during the 157th meeting of the Joint Tax Board (JTB) held on Monday in Ibadan, Oyo State. He drew attention to recent data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) indicating that workers in the informal sector accounted for 92.6 percent of the total employed population in Nigeria as of the first quarter of 2023.
The FIRS chairman, who also chairs the Joint Tax Board, linked the recent drop in Nigeria’s unemployment figures to the formal recognition of informal work by the NBS.
He used the occasion to call for a collaborative, data-driven approach to bringing structure to the informal economy rather than pursuing aggressive taxation.
“I will rather support formalisation using accurate data instead of taxing them outright,” Adedeji said. “President Bola Tinubu has been clear: the focus should be on taxing the fruits, not the seeds, so we don’t destroy what people have struggled to build.”
The JTB meeting, themed “Taxation of the Informal Sector: Potentials and Challenges”, brought together heads of the 36 state Internal Revenue Services to discuss sustainable and inclusive ways of engaging the informal economy.
Adedeji urged participants to explore innovative strategies that would make it easier for informal sector actors to transition into the formal system, where they can enjoy access to financial services, social security, and legal protections.
He also revealed that plans are underway to transform the Joint Tax Board into the Joint Revenue Board (JRB), which will have a broader mandate and operational scope.
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