• All generated funds must go to FAAC, says Edun

Revenue-generating agencies will no longer keep a part of the funds, the Federal Government said yesterday.

The long-standing practice of cost-of-revenue-collection deductions has ended.

The move, according to the government, is aimed at promoting fiscal transparency and ensuring that more funds are available for national and subnational governments.

Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, said this yesterday in Abuja during the launch of the National Development Update.

He explained that while Nigeria’s gross revenues have continued to rise, a substantial portion of the proceeds has been deducted as the cost of collection by agencies such as the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).

These deductions, he said, have not translated into tangible improvements in national development.

Edun said the review of the deductions is part of a broader fiscal reform agenda mandated by President Bola Tinubu.

“Funds have flowed to the Federation Account, but the point is this — efficiency of that spending is critical,” he said.

“We have been mandated by His Excellency, Mr. President, to take a look at deductions — not just those for the cost of collection, but deductions generally.” (The Nation)