Bill Gates Says Nigeria’s Tax Collection Rate is Too Low, Offers Solution
- Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, has highlighted Nigeria's low tax collection rates, stressing the impact on funding critical sectors like health and education
- Speaking at Nutrivision 2024 in Abuja, Gates emphasised the need for efficient management of health programme funds to build public trust
- He also expressed optimism about Nigeria's potential to become a major food exporter with improved agricultural support
Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, has raised concerns over Nigeria's low tax collection rates, emphasising the challenges this poses to financing critical sectors such as health and education.
Bill Gates addressed the issue of Nigeria's low tax collection rates during Nutrivision 2024 in Abuja, a Pan-African youth dialogue on nutrition.
Source: Getty Images
He emphasized the need for Nigeria to increase government funding over time, pointing out that current tax collection is insufficient.
“Over time, there are plans for Nigeria to fund the government more than it does today. The actual tax collection in Nigeria is actually pretty low."
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Gates highlighted this in response to a query about financing large-scale public health initiatives.
Gates stressed the importance of building citizens' confidence in the government's ability to manage funds effectively.
"If citizens want the education and the health things, as they develop the confidence that these programmes can be very well run, and our foundation is involved with a lot of the exemplars that are showing the way in terms of making sure the money is spent really well." he said.
Bill Gates emphasized the importance of a well-organized primary healthcare system with strategically located and sufficiently staffed centers.
He pointed out that building trust in health programs can enhance fiscal flexibility, enabling Nigeria to focus more on primary healthcare funding. Gates also noted that effective management of health funds is crucial for gaining public confidence.
Too low indeed
In an interview with Legit.ng, public analyst Chidi Chinedu responded to Bill Gates' recent remarks about Nigeria's low tax collection rate.
While Chinedu expressed discomfort with foreign commentary on Nigeria's internal issues, he acknowledged that the country’s tax-to-GDP ratio is indeed low, compounded by poor tax collection data.
He said:
“I am not too comfortable having some foreigner who may not be fully aware of the peculiarities of Nigeria lecture us about what is best for us. That said, putting the messenger aside, our tax to GDP is indeed comparatively low. Worse still, our tax collection data is also poor. To address these issues, we must grow the economy and expand access to well-paying jobs for our people so as to help them develop the capacity to pay more taxes. Without expanding opportunities on the back of a robust economy, any further demand of more taxes on a large scale will be met with much resentment and rejection. In the short term, existing tax emotions for the ultra wealthy can be done away with to take in more tax revenue, while the economy is being expanded for a more system-wide capacity for higher tax payments.”
Why I visited President Tinubu, Bill Gates speaks
Meanwhile, Legit.ng earlier reported that President Bola Tinubu will be meeting with the founder of Microsoft and co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Bill Gates, and Chairman of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, at the presidential villa in Abuja on Monday, June 19.
Speaking on their visit, Dangote said he led the Microsoft boss to the Presidential Villa to update President Tinubu on the efforts of the foundation in enhancing Nigeria's healthcare sector.
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Source: Legit.ng
