Dr Zaccheus Adedeji, Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) will be one year in office in September 2024.
Adedeji was the former Executive Secretary/CEO of the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC) before he was appointed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to head the FIRS in September 2023.
The Special Adviser on Tax Policy, FIRS, Femi Olarinde, disclosed this during a dinner/ Media Parley with members of the Commerce and Industry Correspondents Association (CICAN), on Thursday in Lagos.
The Special Adviser gave an overview of Dr Adedeji ‘s laudable achievements within the period under review:
Achievements
▪︎Achieved 107 percent of the 2023 Revenue target of N11.55 trillion by collecting N12.36 trillion.
▪︎Over 170 thousand new tax payers have been captured into the tax net due to the birth new business entities.
Achieved 81 percent of the collection of the first quarter of 2024 amounting to N3.94 trillion being an all-time highest in the same quarter and 56 percent higher than Q1 2023.
▪︎Integrated nine (9) new modules on our tax administration system, TaxProMax, automating over 80 percent of manual processes;
▪︎Revolutionalised tax office operation into a streamlined “One-stop shop” catering to diverse taxpayers by their categories: Large taxpayer, Medium taxpayer and Small taxpayer.
This has improved customer satisfaction and has significantly reduced customer complaints between the 4th quarter of 2023 and the 1st quarter of 2024;•
▪︎ Achieved remarkable success in simplifying tax processes by offering personalised services and enhancing tax education. Increase tax compliance by 20%
▪︎Launched the National Single Window initiative which aims to spur economic growth, providing business enterprises with effortless access to the global market by facilitating fast and easy operation at the nation’s port while harmonising and improving government revenue.
▪︎Improve the tax compliance of international shipping companies lifting crude oil in Nigeria.
◇ In picture L -R: Mrs Dapo Awolowo (Head, Office of the Special Adviser on Media to the Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS); Mr. Dare Adekanmbi (Special Adviser on Media to the FIRS chairman); Mr. Charles Okonji, National Chairman, Commerce and Industry Correspondents Association of Nigeria (CICAN); Mr. Femi Olarinde (Special Adviser on Tax Policy) and Mr. Sikiru Akinola (Technical Assistant, Media) at the FIRS Media Parley with CICAN members in Lagos on Thursday, July 11, 2024.
Dr Adedeji attributed these successes to:
▪︎Restructuring the FIRS in pursuit of optimizing operations and enhancing overall effectiveness, FIRS has strategically realigned its focus to bolster productivity, efficiency, and cultivate a customer-centric ethos.
As part of this endeavour to meet new targets, FIRS has revised its structure to reflect the following:
1. People-Centric
2. Effectiveness & Efficiency
3. Cohesiveness
4. Data-Driven Approaches
5. Adaptability
6. Cutting-Edge Innovation
FIRS Strategic Drivers for Success
• People,
• Technology and
• Process.”
He assured Nigerians that the Service will continue to assess, collect and account for revenue accruable to the Nigerian Federation, and administer relevant tax laws.
” We are committed to fair tax administration through responsive and accessible service to optimise revenue for national development,” he said.