Lagos, Oyo, Ogun collect 100 taxes, levies, MAN alleges

THURSDAY, 17 FEBRUARY 2011 00:00 FROM EMEKA ANUFORO, ABUJA NEWS - NATIONAL


THE protracted issue of multiple taxation across the country was again put on the front burner yesterday, with the Manufacturing Association of Nigeria (MAN) putting current taxes and levies in Lagos and two other states at over 100.

A recent research carried out with MAN and United States based Centre for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) indicated that there were over 100 taxes and levies currently being charged by the three tiers of government in Lagos, Oyo and Ogun states as against the 38 legally approved ones.

Director-General, MAN, Jide Mike, who spoke at the Raw Materials Research and Development Council’s 2011 Technology Exposition (TECHNO-EXPO) in Abuja yesterday also lamented that despite Nigeria’s oil wealth, poverty is widespread, with about 70 per cent of the population living on less than $1 per day.

According to Mike, “while many nations are operating business-friendly environment and are further reducing the numbers and rates of taxes as part of the economic stimulus package, the reverse is the case in Nigeria.”

Speaking on other cost challenges faced by manufacturers, Mike also lamented the high interest rate, lack of long-term loans and inadequate operational fund for the Bank of Industry (BoI).

He added: “The development of the manufacturing sector in Nigeria is a chequered one fraught with a myriad of problems. No other sector of the economy can be said to have faced more challenges than the manufacturing sector in terms of doing business both in the past and now.

“It is regrettable that the enabling environment has not been fully created for manufacturing to thrive. This has made the sector to record dismal performance over the years, which has remained a source of concern to both the stakeholders in the public and private sectors.”

Mike added: “The example of China is worthy of emulation. From a largely agrarian economy, China got into limelight and become a leading partner in the world market through her massive manufacturing and export promotion effort. China’s textile industry, the largest in the world, contributed about $420 billion to that country’s GDP in 2007 while textile exports stood at $178 billion in the same year. .

“Through such massive industrialisation and export promotion effort, China is able to create extensive job opportunities for her teeming population, reap impressive foreign exchange build up, enjoy improvement in the quality of life and reduction in the country’s poverty level.

“There is however the need to stress that although the contribution of manufacturing sector to GDP may be low now, yet the sector is a major employer of labour, giving many Nigerians a chance to participate in economic development, and transferring vital industrial skills to them in the process. All industries and almost all activities depend on manufacturing to some extent.”

Despite the myriad of challenges with the sector, he described Nigeria as an investment haven “in view of the aforementioned opportunities that abound in the manufacturing sector and the supportive sectors of the economy.”