The proposal was made by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, during a meeting with a Mastercard delegation in Abuja.

According to the minister, the initiative would support intra-African trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) by reducing transaction costs and improving payment efficiency across the continent.

Currently, many cross-border card transactions within Africa are processed through intermediary currencies such as the U.S. dollar. This often results in multiple currency conversions and additional costs for consumers and businesses.

For example, a transaction between a Nigerian cardholder and a merchant in Ghana may first be converted from Ghanaian cedis to U.S. dollars before being converted again into naira.

Oyedele said Africa has an opportunity to modernise its payment ecosystem by enabling direct settlements between local currencies.

“We hope that, for example, we have a payment card that you can use to pay from naira to Kenyan shillings, to South African rand, without a third currency. And we know you can make it possible,” he told the Mastercard delegation.

He noted that removing intermediary currencies from cross-border transactions would improve efficiency, reduce costs and strengthen economic integration among African countries.

The minister also urged Mastercard to expand access to consumer credit in Nigeria, noting that obtaining credit cards remains difficult even for high-income earners and senior government officials.

“Based on my own personal experience, one of the areas where we hope you will take the lead is just making credit cards available to Nigerians. It is difficult, even for someone at my level, to get a credit card,” he said.

Oyedele acknowledged the progress made by Nigeria’s fintech industry but said there remains significant potential for further growth.

According to him, Nigeria hosts five of Africa’s nine fintech unicorns, highlighting the country’s growing role in the continent’s digital financial services sector.

“Our fintech sector is quite developed, but we know that we can do much better. We can be much bigger,” he said.

“It is interesting to know that Africa has nine unicorns, and five of them are in Nigeria. So we know that the possibilities are even bigger.”

The minister assured investors and technology companies of the government’s commitment to maintaining policy consistency and providing regulatory support to encourage innovation and investment in Nigeria’s digital economy.

“We welcome you to Nigeria. We want you to do more, and we are willing, from the government’s side, to work with you,” he added.

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Amid the ongoing debate surrounding the Tax Reform Bill 2024, a fact-check by PRNigeria has confirmed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Taiwo Oyedele, Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, previously opposed a proposal to increase Value-Added Tax (VAT) during former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

Recent social media posts have circulated screenshots alleging Tinubu and Oyedele were vocal critics of the Buhari administration’s VAT hike plans. One of the posts features a bold caption: “Tinubu opposes the Buhari administration’s plan to increase VAT.” The resurgence of these claims comes as the Tax Reform Bill 2024, which proposes increasing VAT from 7.5% to 15% by 2030, sparks public scrutiny.

Tinubu’s Opposition in 2019

During his 67th birthday colloquium on March 28, 2019, held at the International Conference Centre in Abuja, Tinubu, then the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), publicly opposed the proposed VAT hike. He stated, “An increase in VAT will reduce the purchasing power of Nigerian consumers and is capable of increasing hardship in the country.” Tinubu urged the then Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, who chaired the National Economic Council (NEC), to reconsider the proposal.

Mainstream media outlets widely reported Tinubu’s remarks, with headlines emphasizing his resistance to the VAT hike, such as “Tinubu Kicks Against Proposed Increase in VAT.”

Oyedele’s Opposition on Social Media

Taiwo Oyedele, a tax expert and then a private sector professional, also opposed the proposed VAT increase. In a series of tweets, he criticized the plan, stating that it was poorly timed and inconsistent with Nigeria’s economic realities. He warned that an increase without mechanisms like a registration threshold and the zero-rating of basic goods would disproportionately burden the poor and small businesses.

Oyedele specifically criticized the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) under Babatunde Fowler, which had suggested raising VAT from 5% to between 7.25% and 8.75%. His comments aligned with principles outlined in the 2017 National Tax Policy, which aimed to protect vulnerable populations.

The Current Debate

The resurfaced criticisms have reignited discussions about fiscal policies and alleged inconsistencies in President Tinubu’s approach to tax reforms. The Tax Reform Bill 2024, currently at its second reading in the National Assembly, proposes a phased VAT increase and other fiscal adjustments. While Oyedele, now Chairman of the Tax Reform Committee, was initially quoted as supporting a 10% VAT hike, he later denied such plans, stating that the Federal Government has no intention of increasing VAT.

PRNigeria’s Verdict

Following its investigation, PRNigeria confirmed that both Tinubu and Oyedele opposed the VAT hike during Buhari’s administration. The fact-check involved reverse image searches and reviews of media reports, which corroborated the claims.

Conclusion: The assertion that Tinubu and Oyedele opposed the VAT increase during Buhari’s tenure is accurate. Their positions, widely reported at the time, were consistent with their advocacy for policies that protect the poor and promote economic stability.

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TECHDIGEST – The Federal ​Government has imposed a tax on telephone calls in the nation to fund free healthcare for vulnerable​ Nigerians.​​

This new tax is coming despite moves by telecom companies to increase the price of calls, SMS, and data by 40 percent as a result of an unfavorable operating environment.

The telecom tax, in the equivalent of a minimum of one kobo per second for phone calls, is a part of the sources of funds required to finance free healthcare for the Vulnerable Group in Nigeria, according to the National Health Insurance Authority Bill 2021 signed by President Muhammadu Buhari last week.

Under the new tax, the federal government will get a minimum of one kobo per second for phone calls It added that the Vulnerable Group Fund will subsidize the provision of healthcare to children under five, pregnant women, the aged, physically and mentally challenged, and the indigent as may be defined from time to time.

The Act includes a provision under Section 26 subsection 1c which states that one of the sources of money for the Vulnerable Group Fund shall include a telecommunications tax, not less than one kobo per second of GSM calls.

Speaking on the development via his Twitter handle, Taiwo Oyedele, fiscal policy partner and Africa tax leader at PwC, said the new telecommunications tax is equivalent to a 9 percent tax on GSM calls since call rates are charged at 11 kobo per second.

“S.26 of this new law imposes a telecommunications tax of not less than 1kobo per second on GSM calls. With call rates at about 11kobo per second, this translates to a 9% tax on GSM calls,” his tweet reads in part.

According to the act, the Vulnerable Group Fund is money budgeted to pay for healthcare services for vulnerable Nigerians who cannot pay for health insurance in a bid to subsidize the cost of provision of health care services to vulnerable people in the country.

READ ALSO: Why Telcos Are Asking For 40% Tariff Hike On Data, Calls – ALTON

For funding, the act provides several options such as a basic health care provision fund to the authority; health insurance levy; telecommunications tax, not less than one kobo per second of GSM calls; money that may be allocated to the Vulnerable Group Fund by the Government; motley that accrues to the Vulnerable Group Fund from investments made by the Council: and grants, donations, gifts, and any other voluntary contributions made to the Vulnerable Group Fund.

But telecom subscribers under the aegis of the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers, have said they will reject this new move by the government.

The President of the association, Adeolu Ogunbanjo, said, “It is quite unfortunate that the government is viewing telecoms as a cash cow. We are saying. There is a lot of corruption in the system, and rather than curb that they want to focus on the telecoms sector. “What do they mean by vulnerable?

Vulnerable people in the nation are probably about 80 percent of the population; we are all vulnerable. What has happened to the health budget? Why should it touch telecoms again? The government should look elsewhere for money. This new action is only likely to impoverish more Nigerians and they are masquerading as helping the vulnerable. This is not right.”

Source: Techeconomy.ng

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