18 September 2018 :In her inaugural address as Acting Minister of Finance, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed highlighted the revenue challenges that continue to hold Nigeria back. The country remains too reliant on oil prices which, though currently high, are volatile and outside the government’s control. The minster also stated that the Ministry of Finance has tried to boost internally generated revenues, particularly by improving Nigeria’s tax generation.
The country has one of the lowest tax-GDP ratios in the world (6%) and efforts to strengthen this, e.g. through the Voluntary Assets & Income Declaration Scheme, have borne only little fruit. Amid this, Nigeria has turned to the debt markets to finance its fiscal plans, with debt stock increasing from N12.6 trillion in 2015 to N22.4 trillion in the middle of 2018. But with revenues still low, increased borrowing would continue to pressure Nigeria’s debt servicing costs.
Reporting for EasyKobo on Monday , 17 September 2018 in Lagos, Nigeria
Source: Vetiva Capital Management Limited