Edo Targets N10bn Monthly Revenue, Set To Digitalize System

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

The Edo State Government has said that it is targeting a monthly Internally Generated Revenue, IGR, of over N10 billion Naira in the months ago.

Speaking on Thursday, January 9, 2024, the Executive Chairman of the Edo State Internal Revenue Service EIRS, Oladele Bankole Balogun, emphasized the readiness of the authorities to shore up the state’s internally generated revenue profile from its present N6.4 billion to N10 billion monthly.

He expressed the commitment of the current Edo State Government towards  widening its tax net, as well as plugging all loopholes within the system.

He informed that  Governor Monday Okpebholo’s administration has signaled its intention to finance a substantial part of its projects through IGR .

“Governor Monday Okpebholo has a bold vision for the State, and is set to usher in a new era of efficient revenue collection, ensuring increased resources for the State’s development

“We are committed to cleaning up the system ,blocking loopholes and phasing out manual revenue collection .It is time to modernize our process”, Balogun noted .

According to him, the EIRS has received the nod from the Governor, to rejig the State’s revenue collection system targeting the introduction of modern cutting-edge technologies.

The revenue Board Chairman insisted that the envisaged technology-driven system will potentially minimize, if not completely eliminate leakages, inefficiencies, as well as shore up revenue profile.

“We aim to double what the State is currently generating. Our IGR presently hovers between N6 .4 billion and N7.8 monthly. There is nothing stopping us from achieving N12 billion monthly in the long run.

“But our immediate  target is N10 billion ,after implementing all the reforms we are about to introduce”, he stated.

Speaking further, Balogun stressed that the old practice whereby revenue collection officials will line the road, armed with sticks, in pursuit of citizens has long become outdated and counter- productive.

“Such anachronistic revenue collection  system, is not only  crude ,but breeds the diversion of  Government statutory revenues into private pockets”, he noted.