President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has ordered a comprehensive review of all deductions and revenue retention practices by major revenue-generating agencies.
The agencies include the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Nigeria Customs Service, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC).
The directive, given at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Wednesday in Abuja, is targeted at increasing public savings, boosting spending efficiency, and providing more resources to finance growth.
Management fee
In his remarks to the Council the President called for a reassessment of NNPC’s 30% management fee and 30% frontier exploration deduction provided under the Petroleum Industry Act.
President Tinubu expressed appreciation for their commitment and hard work in implementing bold and difficult reforms that have dismantled longstanding economic distortions, restored policy credibility, enhanced resilience, and bolstered investor confidence.
He said these reforms had created a transparent, competitive business environment that now positions Nigeria to attract more domestic and foreign investment in critical sectors such as infrastructure, oil and gas, health, and manufactured exports.
Reaffirming his administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda, President Tinubu said the target remains to build a $1 trillion economy by 2030. To achieve this, the economy must grow by at least 7% annually from 2027.
Further briefing Journalists on the President’s directive, the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun said macroeconomic stability indicators are improving, with exchange rates stabilising, inflation coming down, revenues rising, and debt-to-GDP ratios coming within range.
He described the growth target as “not just an economic target but a moral imperative,” noting that higher growth is the only sustainable path to tackling poverty.
He also cited the July 2025 IMF Article IV report, which he said affirms Nigeria’s economic trajectory and underlines the importance of investment-led growth.
Ward-based initiative
He said that the President highlighted the launch of the Renewed Hope Ward Development Programme, a ward-based initiative covering all 8,809 wards across Nigeria’s 774 local government areas.
The programme he explained is designed to empower economically active individuals at the grassroots through a micro-level poverty reduction approach.
Edun revealed that the initiative would involve subnational governments and private sector partners to ensure efficient and impactful implementation.
He said that during the last National Economic Council meeting, he urged governors to prioritise productivity-enhancing investments, strengthen food security, and deepen collaboration with local governments to accelerate growth and ensure no Nigerian is left behind.
Edun emphasised that public investment currently accounts for only 5% of GDP due to low public savings.
He said optimising every available naira was critical to sustaining momentum and financing growth, especially in a period of global liquidity constraints.
NNPC’s Charges
Accordingly, he directed the Economic Management Team, chaired by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, to review all deductions from the Federation Account, including cost of collection by FIRS, Customs, NUPRC, and NIMASA, as well as NNPC’s charges.
The team is to present actionable recommendations to FEC for the optimal way forward.
He said that Nigeria is now seen as an attractive investment destination across multiple sectors, aided by a competitive exchange rate.
Edun reiterated that savings are the foundation for investment, whether from domestic sources or foreign inflows, and that the President’s charge is to urgently raise public sector savings.
Revenue retention
This will involve reviewing deductions and revenue retention practices to make more funds available for investment.
He said the President commended FEC members for their resilience and support in implementing the reform agenda.
Edun disclosed that he also presented two memos: one for $125 million in Islamic Development Bank financing for infrastructure in Abia State, covering about 35 kilometres of roads in Umuahia and 126 kilometres in Aba; and another on refinancing ₦4 trillion in outstanding electricity sector obligations.
According to him, the electricity sector debt resolution will be implemented in phases under the expert management of the Debt Management Office and other relevant agencies. The first phase is expected to be completed within three to four weeks.
Lateefah Ibrahim