……Nigeria to participate in rules development for country , Africa’s interest
By Ayomide Otitoju
A delegation from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) met with Nigerian representatives on 4th and 5th April 2023, at a workshop it jointly organised with the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), to discuss the maximisation of the benefits of the Two-Pillar Solution for Nigeria.
This is contained in the Workshop’s Outcome Statement released today.
The Outcome Statement was signed by the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Muhammad Nami and the OECD Representative, Mr. Ben Dickinson.
The Two-Pillar Solution, a proposal by the OECD Inclusive Framework, is a set of proposed rules, endorsed by 138 countries across the world as a uniform solution to the tax challenges of the digitalised economy, as well as Base Erosion and Profit Shifting.
Nigeria, one of the four members of the Inclusive Framework that did not endorse the set of rules, met with the OECD delegation last week to familiarise relevant government officials with the rules, Nigeria’s position, as well as the potential benefits of the Two-Pillar Solution to the country and the world in general.
The workshop was attended by key stakeholders, led by the Executive Chairman of the FIRS, Mr Muhammad Nami, who was represented by the Coordinating Director, Executive Chairman’s Group, Mr. Muhammad Lawal Abubakar.
Also in attendance were the representatives of the Office of the Vice President, the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, the Federal Ministry of Justice, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Nigeria Export Processing Zone Authority (NEPZA), Oil and Gas Free Zone Authority (OGFZA), Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Joint Tax Board (JTB), and some States’ tax authorities.
After a critical review of the rules and Nigeria’s participation in their development, stakeholders at the meeting resolved that “there is the need for Nigeria’s continued participation in the rule development, as a member of the Inclusive Framework, to ensure that the interest of the country and Africa is factored into the design and development of the rules.”
The Outcome Statement noted that whether or not Nigeria endorsed the statement of October 2021, and the detailed rules to be released later, to address challenges arising from the digitalisation of the economy, the country’s tax base and fiscal policy options will be impacted by the implementation of the Two-Pillar solution, especially the Pillar 2 Global Minimum Tax Rules of 15 percent effective tax rate , the GloBE rules.
The meeting consequently observed that there was the need for Nigeria to immediately implement fiscal policy measures to address these potential impacts
