President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on October 1st broadcast, called on citizens to embrace the culture of tax compliance as the nation works toward economic recovery and inclusive growth.
Delivering his address to mark Nigeria’s 65th Independence anniversary, Tinubu said that while the government is ‘plumbing of the economy,’ citizens must play their part by paying taxes and supporting homegrown enterprise.
“Let us be a nation of producers, not just consumers. Let us farm our land and build factories to process our produce. Let us patronise ‘Made-in-Nigeria’ goods. I say Nigeria first. Let us pay our taxes,” the president urged.
The call comes as the administration announced a rise in Nigeria’s tax-to-GDP ratio from below 10 percent to 13.5 percent in just over two years, with a new tax law expected to take effect in January 2026.
According to Tinubu, the law will not increase burdens on existing taxpayers but will expand the tax base and provide relief for low-income earners.
“The tax law is not about increasing the burden on existing taxpayers but about expanding the base to build the Nigeria we deserve and providing tax relief to low-income earners,” he said.
The president highlighted a series of economic milestones his administration has achieved since May 2023, including N20 trillion in non-oil revenue mobilised by August 2025, a rebound in oil production to 1.68 million barrels per day, and foreign reserves climbing to $42.03 billion, the highest level since 2019.
But he cautioned that Nigeria’s economic transformation would not be sustained without a sense of civic responsibility from its citizens.
“The accurate measure of our success will not be limited to economic statistics alone, but rather in the food on our families’ tables, the quality of education our children receive, the electricity in our homes, and the security in our communities,” Tinubu said.
On the 65th anniversary of independence, Tinubu positioned tax compliance as central to the country’s long-term vision of a prosperous and self-reliant Nigeria.
“With Almighty God on our side, I can assure you that the dawn of a new, prosperous, self-reliant Nigeria is here,” he concluded.