Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, Tuesday in Abuja declared that Nigeria had expanded international tax cooperation, deploying information exchange mechanisms to identify and recover revenues lost through illicit financial practices. Edun disclosed this in a keynote address at the opening ceremony of Committee on Tax and Illicit Financial Flows of the Specialised Technical Committee on Finance, Monetary Affairs, Economic Planning and Integration (STC – FMAEPI).

His address dwelt on “The Imperative of African Fiscal Domestic Reform in a New World Order.”

Edun recalled that since May 2023, under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu, Nigeria had implemented comprehensive tax reforms aimed at simplifying the tax system, broadening the tax base, reducing the burden on vulnerable populations, and improving compliance.

He said the reforms came into effect in January 2026, adding that the administration has also strengthened transparency and accountability in the management of natural resource revenues.

Edun stated, “The president signed Executive Order 9 that stipulates that all oil and gas revenues are remitted into constitutionally designated accounts prior to disbursement.

“In addition, the removal of fuel subsidies and the unification of the exchange rate have significantly improved fiscal transparency, reduced distortions, and strengthened investor confidence.

“To further enhance trade efficiency and reduce leakages, Nigeria recently launched a National Single Window system—an important step in tackling trade-based illicit financial flows.”

The minister said, “These reforms are already yielding results. Nigeria has recorded notable improvements in revenue performance, particularly in non-oil revenues, alongside stronger fiscal buffers and increased investor confidence.

“We have also expanded international tax cooperation, deploying information exchange mechanisms to identify and recover revenues lost through illicit financial practices.”

While the reforms reflected Nigeria’s experience, Edun stated that they also underscored a broader point that practical, country-led reforms were essential to advancing Africa’s collective fiscal resilience.

He listed priority areas for African fiscal reform, pointing out that the path forward requires clarity of priorities.

According to him, Africa’s fiscal reform agenda must focus on, first, broadening the tax base through improved compliance and reduced leakages, strengthening public financial management to ensure transparency, accountability, and value for money.

Others were promoting domestic savings and financial inclusion to mobiliselocal

capital, developing robust capital markets to support investment and innovation, as well as intensifying efforts to combat illicit financial flows through stronger enforcement and cross-border cooperation.

In his address, Executive Chairman, Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), Dr. Zacch Adedeji, said Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) remained one of the most pressing threats to Africa’s economic progress. Adedeji called for a united front to tackle the menace.

He lamented that every year, billions of dollars that should support development across the continent were diverted through illegal financial transfers, trade mispricing, tax evasion, and opaque corporate structures.

Adedeji said the huge outflows represented lost opportunities, hospitals, schools, infrastructure, and investments in the future of Africans.

He said the scale of the problem was highlighted in the influential High LevelPanel on Illicit Financial Flows from Africa Report, which brought global attention to the magnitude of financial leakages affecting African economies.

However, he said Nigeria had proactively responded in various ways to the Mbeki Panel Report findings and other policy recommendations aimed at tackling IFFs.

He said addressing the challenges required coordinated action across multiple fronts within the national systems and at continental levels.

Adedeji stated, “Illicit financial flows being inherently transnational in nature exploit differences between jurisdictions and weaknesses in international regulatory systems.

“This is why continental cooperation through platforms such as this Subcommittee is not only useful but indispensable.

“The future prosperity of Africa will depend significantly on our ability to build strong fiscal institutions, protect our financial resources, and mobilised the revenues required to finance development from within our own economies.”

The NRS chairman said the meeting reflected the “seriousness with which Africa is confronting one of the most important challenges of our time, how to strengthen our fiscal systems, safeguard our resources, and mobilise the domestic revenues required to finance Africa’s development”.

Adedeji explained, “This meeting takes place at a time when development financing gap is widening for many African countries.

“Governments across the continent must finance infrastructure, strengthen social protection, support industrialisation, and address climate vulnerabilities while at the same time grappling with substantial losses of financial resources to through illicit financial flows, tax evasion, aggressive tax avoidance and the like.

“The central purpose of our gathering, illicit financial flows remains one of the most pressing threats to Africa’s economic progress. Every year, billions of dollars that should support development across our continent are diverted through illegal financial transfers, trade mispricing, tax evasion, and opaque corporate structures.

“Thankfully, within these challenges lies the opportunity to rethink the foundations of our development financing. Revenue authorities, stand at the frontline of this opportunity. Tax administrations play a central role in building capable states.”

He said, “Effective tax systems do not only generate revenue, they strengthen governance, deepen the relationship between citizens and the state, and provide the resources required for sustainable development.

“When revenue systems are transparent, efficient, and fair, they reinforce public confidence in government institutions.

“This is why strengthening revenue administration has become a central component of fiscal reform across Africa.”

He added, “Across the continent, revenue authorities are modernising their systems, expanding the tax base, improving compliance frameworks, and adopting digital solutions to enhance efficiency and transparency. Nigeria has embraced this reform agenda with determination.”

The NRS chairman said, “Through the ongoing modernisation of the Nigeria Revenue Service, we are pursuing a comprehensive transformation of our tax administration systems to ensure that they are more responsive, technology-driven, and capable of supporting national development objectives.

“These reforms are part of Nigeria’s broader economic strategy aimed at strengthening domestic resource mobilisation, improving fiscal transparency, and creating a more predictable environment for investment and economic growth.”

Ndubuisi Francis and James Emejo