Nigeria has recently witnessed a significant growth in its tax revenue in the first half of 2024. Indicators show that the federal government recorded an 85% increase in its revenue from Value Added Tax (VAT) and Corporate Income Tax (CIT), reaching an impressive N6.44 trillion, compared to N3.48 trillion in the same period last year.
During the same period, the country’s major commercial banks paid a total of N579.38 billion as income tax, representing a 109.6% increase from N276.39 billion in the previous year. The financial statements of the banks for the first half of 2024 reveal that Zenith Bank led the way with N149.03 billion, followed by Ecobank with N132.5 billion and Guaranty Trust Bank with N98.2 billion.
Other major banks that also paid significant amounts of income tax during the period include Access Bank with N67.6 billion, United Bank of Africa with N51.06 billion, Stanbic IBTC with N30.64 billion, and First Bank of Nigeria with N21.4 billion, to name a few.
The latest data from the National Statistics Office reveals that VAT revenue increased by 100.6 per cent to N2.99 trillion in the first half of 2024, from N1.49 trillion last year. Similarly, CIT revenue increased by 73.3 per cent year-on-year, from N1.99 trillion to N3.45 trillion this year.
It is worth noting that the Federal Government has affirmed that tax revenue is currently the country’s major source of revenue. This strong growth in tax revenue has enabled members of the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee to anticipate data from the Federal Inland Revenue Service every month to have funds to allocate to the three tiers of government.
This positive trend in Nigeria’s tax revenue reflects an improvement in the country’s economic situation, highlighting the importance of fiscal policies and tax collection efforts for financial stability and sustainable development.