E-Business
LIRS, FIRS Ink MoU on Exchange of Information, Joint Tax Audit
The Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS) and Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) on Monday, February 6, 2023, signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the exchange of information and implementation of joint tax audit and investigation exercise.
L-R: Lagos State Commissioner for Finance, Dr Rabiu Olowo Onaolapo, Executive Chairman, LIRS, Mr Ayodele Subair, Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Executive Chairman, FIRS, Muhammad Mamman Nami, Minister of State for Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mr Clement Agba and Lagos state Attorney-General & Commissioner for Justice, Mr Moyosore Onigbanjo SAN during the signing of MoU between the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS) and Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) held at the Lagos State House, Marina on Monday, February 6, 2023.
The agreement signing ceremony held at the Lagos State House, Marina, was witnessed by Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Minister of State for Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mr Clement Agba, FIRS and LIRS coordinating directors, as well as some of the Lagos state exco members which included the state Commissioner for Finance, Dr Rabiu Olowo Onaolapo and the state Attorney-General & Commissioner for Justice, Mr Moyosore Onigbanjo SAN.
While the Executive Chairman, LIRS, Mr Ayodele Subair signed on behalf of Lagos State, his counterpart, Muhammad Mamman Nami, Executive Chairman, FIRS signed on behalf of the federal government.
Speaking at the signing event, Mr Ayodele Subair, Executive Chairman, LIRS, in his remarks, said the importance of the agreement was to foster greater collaboration between the two agencies.
He said though both tax agencies are not only independent of each other but different in the types of taxes they administer, the collaboration between the tax authorities was to promote the smooth operation of activities not only for the benefit of tax authorities but for improved service delivery for taxpayers.
Subair noted; “Notwithstanding its inclusion as a fundamental obligation of every Nigerian citizen pursuant to Section 24 (f) of the 1999 Constitution as amended, filing of annual income tax returns or payment of tax therefrom is not an issue that citizens are keen on. Nonetheless, citizens expect to have direct benefit of democracy and good governance without remembering that the most reliable and sustainable means of Domestic Resource mobilization for Government expenditure is taxation.
“There is no reason to debate the above as it has been established that tax compliance and good governance are expected to co-exist as the undividable social contract that binds citizens and governments anywhere in the world. Therefore, citizens and governments are expected to fulfill their end of the bargain in achieving a balance.”
“Today’s signing of this Memorandum of Understanding is in furtherance of the above bargain on the part of the tax authorities. While this initiative of a joint audit is not a new one, it is peculiar because it comes at a time when our dear nation struggles with the dwindling oil receipts and other economic woes which have affected the tax-to-GDP ratio which is currently adjudged as the lowest globally, standing at approximately 6%, compared to neighboring countries which average between 15 – 25%., Subair submitted.
According to the LIRS Chairman, some of the expected achievements from this collaboration between both tax authorities include a reduction of compliance costs for taxpayers; improved transparency in the tax administration process, which will impact tax disputes, incidences and reconciliation; reduced administration costs for both tax authorities; and elimination of hiding place for recalcitrant taxable persons and entities.
In his own remarks, Executive Chairman, FIRS, Muhammad Mamman Nami, said the essence of the collaboration between the FIRS and LIRS was to enable the two agencies to carry out joint projects together, secondly, in the course of its investigations, they both work as a team while the third and most important reason was to ensure automatic exchange of information which would enable the agency get a bigger data for seamless tax administration.
“We will work together as a team during the investigation and have an automatic exchange of information. With this, we will be able to carry out our mandate seamlessly. As part of the joint operation, we will be able to implement presumptive tax as far as issues of tax administration are concerned,” Nami said.
In his own submission, describing the collaboration as “epoch-making”, Governor Sanwo-Olu noted that the conversation for the harmonization of the two agencies’ mandates started about a year ago, based on the need to forge a common front in widening the tax net to raise the country’s tax to GDP ratio.
The Governor observed that Nigeria had maintained an unimpressive tax-to-GDP ratio of between 6 to 8 per cent, despite the yearly record-breaking turnovers by both FIRS and LIRS. This, he said, has mounted pressure on the nation’s resources and created an imbalance in Government expenditure. Sanwo-Olu said Nigeria must operate at the same level as other nations within sub-Saharan Africa doing between 14 and 15 per cent in tax to GDP ratio in order to support the Government’s development programmes and improve accountability.
He said: “We have just witnessed an epoch-making ceremony between the Federal Inland Revenue Service and Lagos Inland Revenue Service.
“This collaboration did not just happen by chance; it is a conversation we started about a year ago with the chairman of FIRS when both parties reviewed their successes and limitations. It was clear there was a need for a relationship to be consummated. Both FIRS and LIRS have been breaking records of their tax collection and administration yearly, but this is not enough. We have an unimpressive tax-to-GDP ratio, which ranges between six and eight per cent; this is totally unacceptable.
“Studies have shown that there would be better service delivery to the citizens and improvement in the efficiency of tax collection when the two agencies work together. The cost of tax collection would be reduced, we would see better customer satisfaction and more resources would be generated for the Government to deliver more dividends of democracy.
“For us as a State, we are humbled by this collaborative effort and we believe our citizens will be the ultimate beneficiaries of this initiative. The MoU is in the best interest of the public, as it affirms the reason why we need to come together and strengthen the cordial working relationship between the two agencies.”
Federal government has said that it has successfully captured 59,786 inmates, representing approximately 74 percent of the total prison population into the National Identity Number (NIN) database.
This figure is based on a total of 80,879 inmates across 256 custodial centres across the country.
Abubakar Umar, spokesman, Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), Deputy Controller of Corrections, who made this disclosure in a statement issued on Sunday in Abuja, dismissed recent media reports alleging that the NIN registration had yet to begin in custodial centres.
Umar described such report as misleading, inaccurate, and not representative of the current situation.
According to Umar, the NIN registration exercise within the correctional facilities was ongoing and has achieved substantial progress.
He credited the achievement to collaboration between the NCoS and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), which has enabled successful enrollment of majority of inmates into the national identity database.
According to him, “As of June 7, 2025, a total of 59,786 inmates, roughly 74 percent cent of the total inmate population have been captured on the NIMC platform,” Umar said.
“Efforts are ongoing to register the remaining inmates, and necessary mechanisms have been established to ensure the seamless completion of the process.”
He emphasised that the assertion that NIN registration has not started in custodial centres was factually incorrect and overlooks the extensive work already carried out.
The Service reaffirmed its commitment to integrating all inmates into national data systems, including NIN registration, as part of broader efforts to support rehabilitation, reintegration, and digital inclusion for individuals in custody.
Umar also urged media outlets to confirm their information with appropriate authorities before publication to prevent the spread of misinformation that could undermine the Service’s progress and public understanding.
National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has clarified that all its verification service platforms remain fully functional and accessible to all authorized partners, including security agencies.
Abisoye Coker-Odusote, DG, NIMC
In a statement on Thursday, the Commission firmly denied claims that it had denied the Police Service Commission (PSC) access to its verification server.
Dr. Kayode Adegoke, head of Corporate Communications, NIMC, described the reported “inability of the Police Service Commission to access the NIMC verification server” as misleading and inaccurate.
He suggested that any challenges faced by the PSC may be due to internal issues within the commission itself, not from NIMC’s end.
The statement reads: “To set the record straight, the NIMC granted verification access to all Nigerian Police formations for the verification of the National Identification Number (NIN). The NPF, PSC and other security agencies have been enjoying uninterrupted verification services for over five years.
“NIMC has provided top-notch verification services for recruitment into the Nigeria Police Force, as conducted by the PSC and at no time have there been any complaints or issues regarding NIN Verification by the NPF or PSC.
“The Commission has a robust and harmonious working relationship with the Nigerian Police Force and the Police Service Commission. The Information Communications and Technology (ICT) department of the Nigeria Police Force is actively managing the long-standing verification and integration service between the NIMC and all Nigeria Police formations.Entertainment tourism packages
“NIMC will continue to provide flawless verification services for the purpose of recruitment, security mapping, cybercrime control, and any other security matters.
“The framework by which NIMC provides services to the security agencies was recently restructured for standardization and effective implementation, following consultation with the Office of the National Security Adviser, and NPF has confirmed the verification services have continued to be available. We therefore believe that any service interruption experienced by PSC may be due to internal matters.
“NIMC is committed to providing excellent verification services to the PSC, NPF and all its partners but the terms and conditions inherent must be adhered to for uninterrupted flow of service.”
Nigerian government, through the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), has announced a strategic collaboration to strengthen cybersecurity and clean up the nation’s cyberspace.
Recognizing that cybercrime knows no borders, Nigeria also reaffirmed its commitment to fostering stronger global partnerships within the cybersecurity ecosystem.
This announcement was made during a press conference before the inaugural National Cybersecurity Conference, which is scheduled to take place in Abuja from July 9th to 11th, 2025.
Sa’ad Abubakar, national cybersecurity coordinator from the Office of National Security Advisor, said fighting cybercrime must take the whole of society and the whole of the government approach.
According to him, “Apart from the deterrent approach whereby government agencies such as Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arrest individuals, take them to court and prosecute them, the youth can be nurtured into better citizens who can showcase their capacity in better ways and be useful to the country.”
Similarly, Kashifu Abdullahi, director-general, NITDA, also stressed the need for collaborative efforts in fighting cybercrimes.
According to him “Then, in addition to that, we also want to build a stronger global collaboration with the global cyber security ecosystem, because when you look at cybercrime in general, it doesn’t respect the borders.
“Someone can commit a crime from Ghana using a Nigerian ID in the US. So you can look at him physically in a different jurisdiction, pretending to be in another jurisdiction, committing the crime in another jurisdiction.
“So without that kind of synergy and working together, it will be difficult to address these challenges. The third one is challenge. The third one is getting an alternative to cybercrime for our kids in Nigeria. We have this as a major challenge.”
Inuwa further highlighted the upcoming conference’s importance, noting that it would tackle key issues through workshops, discussions on emerging threats, cross-border cybersecurity collaboration strategies, and training programmes.
He also announced that the National Cybersecurity Conference 2025 would feature the Cybersecurity Excellence Awards, recognising top contributions in the field.
The DG extended an invitation to global partners to collaborate with Nigeria in building a safer digital future.
The press conference was attended by notable figures, including Ahmad Sa’ad Abubakar, National Coordinator of, the National Cybersecurity Coordination Centre (NCCC); Hanniel Jafar, Representative of the President, of Cyber Security Experts Association of Nigeria (CSEAN); Ankit Shukla, Managing Director, QNA Marketing Management LLC and members of the press and other stakeholders.
Cyber Crime: Hackers to Hold Secret Conference 3.0 July 25
FG Enrolls 59,786 Inmates on NIN Platform
Gaps on Phone Number Recycling Fuel Identity Theft, Data Breaches- ICIR
Wema Bank Workers, Others Arraigned over Alleged N8.9Bn Cybercrime
Music Stars, Comedians Light Up “Evening with Glo” in Ijebu Ode
Telecom2 days agoAirtel Recommits to Fraud Prevention after NCC’s N104m Fine for SIM Registration Breaches
Telecom2 days agoMTN’s Female Leadership Surges to 41.4%, Doubles Industry Average
Broadcasting2 days agoNCC Warns DJs: Playing Music Without License Could Lead to 5-Year Jail Term
Telecom2 days agoTikTok Rolls Out Personalization Tools for Nigerian Users
News2 days agoIHS Nigeria Reaffirms Commitment to raising Nigeria’s Next Tech Giants from the Ilorin Innovation Hub
General News2 days agoInterswitch, Bank of Sierra Leone Champion Financial Inclusion @ Sierra Leone Fintech Forum 2.0
General News2 days agoNITDA Makes Case for Inclusive Tech for Special Needs
E-Financial2 days agoGambaryan, Binance Executive Leaves Company after 8-Month Detention in Nigeria