2024 Budget: We Will Concentrate More On Tax Revenue, Rely Less Reliance On Borrowing-FG

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, has insisted that the President Bola Tinubu-led government will focus less on borrowing and pay more attention to raising revenues from taxes.

Edun made the disclosure on Wednesday at the public presentation of the FGN 2024 Budget Proposals.

The Nigerian President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, presented his budget before a joint session of the National Assembly, which proposes a N27.5trn fiscal spending for 2024.

The budget deficit is projected at N9.18trn or 3.88 per cent of GDP, which is lower than the N13.78trn deficit recorded in 2023. In the 2023 budget, the deficit represents 6.11 per cent of GDP.

Edun said, “The budget deficit is being brought down from about over 6.11 per cent of GDP to over 3.88 per cent of GDP. That is a huge change in direction from unlimited and limitless borrowing to refocusing on revenue and expenditure management to give value for money.

“We heard that the key target is to increase tax-to-GDP from roughly under 10 per cent now to 18 per cent in a couple of years’ time. That target is a hugely ambitious one, which clearly we need to meet to reduce reliance on borrowing.”

He emphasised that the budget would position the economy for foreign investment to come into the country through private partnerships.

Edun said, “And even privatisation is mentioned in the budget. That is the direction of travel to create a stable micro-economic environment in which investors can come in and the government is yielding grounds to them and allowing them to come in and invest, and provide goods and services to the population of Nigeria.”

He said this is the way that jobs would be created and achieve poverty reduction.