By Chinwendu Obienyi
Economic experts have advised the new administration to seek ways of addressing the efficiency in mobilising and managing revenue collection as this could transform the nation’s economy and reduce its debt burden.
According to the experts who spoke at a Roundtable Discussion: Nigeria’s socio-economic performance since 1999: Lessons for New Policymakers in Lagos recently, Nigeria’s economy has massively under-developed and it is time for the new administration to address the infrastructure, policy environment, power and capital market sector.
Whilst reviewing a book titled; Nigeria in Figures (A Socio-Economic Data Book) written by the Chief Executive Officer/Chief Economist, Analysts’ Data Services and Resources (ADSR), Dr Afolabi Olowookere, Professor Bright Eregha, stated that the country has a lot of administrative data but is yet to develop a dashboard to keep a track of its developmental projects which has in turn rendered policies ineffective.
Eregha stated that the book focuses on key development since 1999 till date; National figures on various sectors in the economy, Regional figures; State figures and Performance scorecard of the Nigerian economy.
He said, “Nigeria currently has a big funding squeeze and without having sufficient data to track your level of progress, this adds to our debt burden, hence the reason for having challenges with external financing”.
Speaking further, Chief Economist and Director, Research and Development at Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), Dr Olusegun Omisakin, said, it is high time Nigeria shifts from sources of revenue to efficient mobilisation and management of revenue collection.
“I do not subscribe to that narrative that Nigerians are paying lower taxes compared to other countries. That is not true because we provide light, water ourselves and so the government is not about how the government can have sources of revenue collections, it is rather how the government can block leakages in the tax system. Our revenue generation and mobilisation has not been fantastic and so until we address efficiency in our revenue mobilisation, management and spending, we will keep looking at the debt crisis.
We are paying huge taxes in this country and the government has sources of revenue generation but we have a problem with revenue mobilisation efficiency, management efficiencies”, Omisakin said.
Sharing her thoughts, the Chief Executive Officer, Emerging Africa Group, Toyin Sanni, said, the challenges that has affected Nigeria over time has been the unfavourable policy and infrastructure environment.
“When you look at what has been happening over time, the private sector has to practically create its own infrastructure which makes us uncompetitive and our investments unsustainable.
Going forward, I think the private sector should be brought in terms of policy decisions, encouraged to invest. We need to have a clear plan for how we are going to meet the significant infrastructure plan. Doling out cash to people will not stimulate productivity rather find a way to support people at the pyramid by bringing them into the system”, Sanni said.
According to her, “The only way that this foreign investment can come is by investments in businesses in Nigeria, and the nature of the investment is either foreign direct investment or foreign portfolio investments.
For foreign direct investments, our business environment, investors need to know that they can access the foreign exchange to repatriate their investments when they need it and of course, for foreign portfolio investments, our capital markets must also be supported, the policies must be favourable”.