Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, said his administration has increased the State Internally Generated Revenue, IGR, from N10.2 billion in 2017 to N32.8 billion in 2022.

The governor said this was achieved by the political will of his administration to implement critical policies and change the narrative of the State IGR without the introduction of extra burden on the citizens.

Akeredolu stated this yesterday in a message to the Stakeholders’ Resolution Retreat on the Harmonisation of Revenue & Ease Of Doing Business in Federal Capital Territory (FCT), held at Heritage Continental Hotel, Akure.

Represented by the state Commissioner for Finance, Mr Wale Akinterinwa, the Governor highlighted some of the numerous challenges inherited by his administration on tax and revenue generation.

According to him, the challenges include, a comatose Board of Internal Revenue Service, cumbersome process of tax payments that made tax payers waited for days to pay at the bank, disenchanted workforce among others.

The Governor stated that in a bid to put an end to the challenges, his government has constructed and completed a new Revenue House Complex for the State Internal Revenue Service on a 10,000 sqm land where some banks have branches for ease of doing business.

Akeredolu, who noted that the problem of multiple taxation was prevalent across the country, adding that the problem had been resolved in the State.

He also explained that the state made deliberate effort and established the Ondo State Development and Investment Promotional Agency (ONDIPA) for development and investment with direct impact on ease-of-doing-business and gradual industrialisation of the state in a sustainable manner.

The governor, who was delighted that Federal Capital Authority chose to hold the Stakeholders’ Resolution Retreat in the state, stressed that the development was an indication that the state tax reforms had attracted federal government and major stakeholders’ attention and applause.

In his welcome address, the Minister, Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Muhammad Musa Bello, CON, explained that one of the biggest challenges facing the FCT was the need to harmonise revenue collection across the FCT .

The Minister, who stated that there were multiple agencies and departments responsible for collecting various types of taxes and fees from businesses and individuals at the FCT which according to him had continued to create confusion, duplication and inefficiency within the service.

Mallam Musa Bello noted that the Federal Capital Territory Internal Revenue Service was created to meet the challenges.

He, therefore, emphasized that the harmonization of revenue and promotion of ease of doing business in the FCT were critical components to create a more prosperous, inclusive and sustainable society.

Also in his welcome address, the Executive Chairman, FCT- Internal Revenue Service, Haruna Abdulahi explained the vision of the organization was to establish a world – class revenue collection system in the FCT that was transparent, accountable and efficient. creating a single, unified platform and dashboard that would enable them to track and monitor all revenue generation in the FCT.

According to the Chairman, this would not only help to ensure highest level of transparency and accuracy, but also build trust and confidence of the people in government and encourage them to support revenue generation efforts of the FCT.

In his goodwill message, the Deji of Akure Kingdom, Oba Aladetoyinbo Ogunlade Adeusi, described revenue generation as critical component of government, saying that internal revenue generation should be the main target of government apart from oil as it was being done in the developed countries.

Oba Aladetoyinbo, however, appealed for tax holiday for businesses particularly, small scale business as a form of encouragement.