The Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele, has called on Nigerian entrepreneurs to formalise their businesses to benefit from the Federal Government’s new tax policies, which exempt small enterprises and minimum-wage earners from paying taxes.
Speaking during a panel session at the 24th Annual Conference of the Women in Management, Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ), themed “The New Tax Law and You,” Oyedele explained that the government’s latest tax reforms are designed to reward compliance and support business growth.
He said President Bola Tinubu’s administration, which signed four tax reform Acts into law in June, has already implemented two, while the remaining two will take effect on January 1, 2026.
Oyedele emphasised that the reforms are people-centred, structured to give small businesses the room to grow before they are taxed. “If you run a small company with an annual turnover of ₦100 million or less, your corporate tax rate is zero per cent. What’s even more interesting is that the Corporate Affairs Commission will register 250,000 small companies free of charge,” he said.
He added that the reforms will also promote fairness in value-added tax administration, especially for essential goods and services. From January 2026, VAT will be removed from food, education, health, and other basic items such as bottled water. “From next year, this bottle of water will be zero-rated for VAT,” he explained, noting that producers would no longer have to pass VAT costs on to consumers.
Oyedele said the decision to lift taxes on essential sectors followed a careful analysis of household spending patterns. “Data show that nearly 80 per cent of low-income households spend all their earnings on five basic needs: food, education, health, rent, and transportation. We decided it makes sense to remove taxes on these essentials,” he stated.
The reforms are expected to ease the financial burden on small businesses and low-income earners, freeing up funds for growth, reinvestment, and employment. For many micro and small-scale entrepreneurs, particularly women-led ventures, these policies could improve sustainability by reducing tax barriers and encouraging business registration.
Meanwhile, the conference’s keynote speaker, former SEC Director-General Arunma Oteh, urged women to step into leadership and political spaces, warning that exclusion from politics would limit women’s influence on national development. “Half of Nigeria’s people are women. Bringing women into the room is not only the right thing to do; it’s the smart thing to do,” she said.
Oteh expressed concern about Nigeria’s low female political representation, noting that the country ranks 143rd out of 144 globally. She called on women to prepare for the 2027 elections, obtain their Permanent Voter Cards, and participate actively in politics. “We must insist that more women step forward to participate in leadership and politics because where politics goes is where this nation will go,” she said.
In a goodwill message, the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, stressed the need to shift the Nigerian economy from stabilisation to growth to improve living standards. “When times are hard, women are hit harder. Supporting women in business and professions has never been more important than now,” she said.
The conference chairperson, retired Supreme Court Justice Amina Augie, encouraged participants to see themselves as their own competitors, urging women to walk confidently in purpose and leadership.
Held under the theme “O.W.N – Own. Walk. Nurture,” the annual WIMBIZ conference gathered hundreds of women leaders, entrepreneurs, professionals, policymakers, and visionaries from across Africa and beyond, focusing on empowerment, governance, and economic growth.
