By Yahaya Umar
Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission has called for urgent economic diversification at all levels of government to meet Nigeria’s current fiscal realities.
The call was made during a strategic retreat of the Commission’s Mobilisation and Diversification Committee, held in Calabar, Cross River State.
The Commission’s Chairman, Muhammed Shehu, said the retreat was designed to evaluate existing revenue mobilisation frameworks, explore innovative approaches to economic diversification, strengthen collaboration with subnationals and other stakeholders, and develop actionable recommendations for national policy.
Represented by the Federal Commissioner for Kwara State, Ismail Agaka, Shehu stressed that Nigeria’s fiscal outlook required urgent reforms.
He said that “Nigeria’s fiscal trajectory is at a crossroads. While the federal government continues to face growing expenditure needs, internally generated revenue remains insufficient across most states.
“The time has come for all stakeholders to adopt a deliberate and data-driven approach to revenue mobilisation and economic diversification”.
The Chairman of the Mobilisation and Diversification Committee and Federal Commissioner for Edo State, Victor Eboigbe, explained that the retreat aimed to examine the challenges confronting the committee and deliberate on innovative and practical strategies to drive sustainable diversification at all levels of government.
In a communiqué issued at the end of the retreat, the committee recommended that economic diversification efforts should be included as one of the proxies for revenue allocation.
It also called for sensitisation of subnational governments through zonal advocacy in collaboration with the six regional development commissions.
The communiqué further urged the Commission to develop a National Policy on Economic Diversification tailored to the economic potential and peculiarities of the three tiers of government.
They also suggested working more closely with pertinent parties to collect information that would help it carry out its duty in an efficient manner.
Eboigbe highlighted some other recommendations include fostering Public-Private Partnerships, enhancing cooperation among federal, state, and local governments to boost investment and growth, and widening the tax net by bringing the informal sector into the system through banks and financial institutions.
The committee also emphasised the importance of governments investing in initiatives with strong revenue potential and job creation, continuing infrastructure development from previous administrations, and rebranding earlier diversification programmes to reflect current economic realities.
