FG spends N13tn on subsidy, to advise incoming govt on removal guidelines
The Federal Government, on Monday, said it has spent over N13 trillion subsidising petrol between 2005 and 2021. The government also said that it was developing a thorough plan that would help the incoming government of president-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu manage the removal of subsidies on petrol without hitches.
It also insisted that the administration of the current president had done well in the management of fuel subsidies.
Speaking at the unveiling of the 2022–2026 Strategic Plan of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in Abuja, Boss Mustapha, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, said the Federal Government had been following the debates around subsidy removal by citizens.
Read also: Experts Advocate for Fuel Subsidy Removal to Boost SME Growth
CITN seeks holistic review of tax policy
The Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, in its 25th annual tax conference held in Abuja, said that it is important to carry out a holistic and thorough review of the country’s international tax policies.
The tax administrator said that this review is to enable the country to have a strong legislative framework that will increase tax revenue in Nigeria.
This year’s conference, titled “Nigeria of the Future: Achieving Sustainable Development Through Taxation,” had experts talk about the current tax situation in the country.
During a panel session on “Global Trend in Taxation of the Digital Economy: Assessing Economic, Legal, and Tax Policy Implications,” some notable financial experts made presentations on the topic during the conference.
“Urgent attention to countermeasures to tax avoidance by multinational enterprises has become important; therefore, there is a need to conduct a holistic review of our international tax policies, including multilateral and bilateral agreements, with a view to having a strong legislative framework that will increase tax revenue in Nigeria,” the CITN noted.
Plateau PPP agency calls for upgrade of Jos airport to Int’l cargo
The Plateau State Infrastructure Promotion and Regulatory Agency has called for the upgrading of the Yakubu Gowon Airport, Jos, to an international cargo and agro-allied airport.
Felix Rwang-Dung, the Director-General of the agency, made the call when he visited the Director-General, Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Michael Ohiani, in Abuja on Monday.
Rwang-Dung said the objective of the visit was to update Ohiani on the progress the Plateau State Public Private Partnership (PPP) Agency has made so far.
He said the visit was an opportunity to work with the ICRC and take advantage of resources that could be provided to establish an effective PPP agency covering various sectors.
“The support of the ICRC will be required to advance the upgrade of Jos airport so that it can become attractive for private investment participation. We are confident that with your distinguished leadership and the ICRC team’s guidance and support, we can establish a model sub-national PPP agency.
“This will attract private sector investments for developmental growth in the Plateau. We believe that the following areas of support from the ICRC will be vital for ensuring that we get the optimum results for the state PPP project,” he said.
FG, LCCI sensitise business community on ETLS
Zubairu Dada, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, said on Monday that the Federal Government and the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) were on a mission to sensitise the business community on the benefits of the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS).
Dada said at a sensitization engagement with the theme “Unhindered Market Access: The ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS)” in Lagos that the ETLS will help ease intra-African trade and increase economic integration in the region.
The ETLS is a trade instrument designed to facilitate intra-regional trade among member states.
The countries covered by the scheme are: Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, and Cote d’Ivoire. Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, and Senegal Sierra Leone and Togo
Dada said the workshop was to create awareness amongst a large number of manufacturers and industrialists in Lagos and the entire South West Geo-Political Zone.
Oil prices extend gains on US plans to refill reserve, Canada’s wildfires
Oil prices went up for the second day early Tuesday as the U.S. plans to buy oil for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) while raging wildfires in Canada add to supply worries.
Brent crude futures rose 31 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $75.54 a barrel by 0043 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $71.38 a barrel, up 27 cents, or 0.4 percent.
The U.S. Department of Energy said on Monday that it would buy 3 million barrels of crude oil for the SPR for delivery in August and asked that offers be submitted by May 31.
