Due to the dynamic and constantly changing nature of the profession, the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) has asked new fellows to update their knowledge on current taxation challenges.
The charge was delivered recently during the institute’s fellowship conferral event by Adesina Adedayo, President and Chairman of Council, CITN.
The council would rely on the fellows’ wealth of knowledge in developing the tax profession, he said, while also advising government to raise important fiscal policies as they affect taxation and the economy. He urged the fellows to project the institute positively through ethical conduct even as they constantly strive for excellence.
Adedayo stated that the country’s current debt burden would require the fellows’ inputs during engagements and analysis sections to help government with actionable policies backed by their implementation strategies. This is in light of the recent 2023 budget Appropriation Bill presented by President Muhammadu Buhari to the National Assembly.
Habibu Mohammed, the governor of Kano State’s special adviser on internally generated revenue (IGR), asked the CITN in his keynote speech to support the creation of procedures and systems for effective tax collection from unregistered firms.
He claimed that by holding important workshops focused entirely on informal sector taxation, this could be accomplished.
He disclosed that recent research on Kano State’s informal sector taxation had found that less than 10% of those enterprises were subject to taxes.
He said that, of the 10%, 50% did not pay the required amount to the government.
Despite all the difficulties, he said that the current administration in Kano State has invested heavily in order to raise more money through taxation of the unorganized sector.
He claimed that this included the judicious use of revenues created by the industry to increase people’s willingness to pay taxes.
