President Muhammadu Buhari has described as regrettable the continued
\nloss of public funds through illicit financial flows, saying it remained
\nan impediment to development and effort by developing countries to scale
\nup resource mobilisation.<\/p>\n
The occasion was a high-level dialogue on “Financing for development”
\nwith the theme: “Putting resources to work for more equal, sustainable
\nsocieties, including combating illicit financial flows” at the 74th
\nUnited Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York at the weekend.<\/p>\n
Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, Prince Clem Ikanade
\nAgba, delivered the President’s speech on the occasion.\u00a0 The President
\nreturned to Abuja last Saturday.<\/p>\n
The President said that multilateral efforts at resolving the problems
\nof illicit financial flows should be comprehensive and holistic with the
\nactive engagement of the origin and recipient countries.<\/p>\n
“In this connection, my administration has demonstrated the required
\npolitical will to ensure the independence of all anti-corruption
\nagencies in Nigeria and reviewed enabling anti-graft laws,” he stated.<\/p>\n
He encouraged member states to join “our efforts to strengthen the
\nUnited Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) and support the
\nStolen Asset Recovery Initiatives of the United Nations and the World
\nBank.”<\/p>\n
President Buhari also said that, “Nigeria recognises the importance of
\nDiaspora Remittance, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Official
\nDevelopment Assistance (ODA) in providing further channels to fund
\ndevelopment projects.<\/p>\n
“As a result, we call on our development partners to live up to their
\ncommitment to achieve the target of 0.7 per cent of ODA\/Gross National
\nIncome (GNI) and 0.15 to 0.20 per cent of ODA\/GNI to least developed
\ncountries.”<\/p>\n
He said the meeting provided for him a veritable platform to highlight
\nsome of the policies and achievements of his administration in the last
\ncouple of years.<\/p>\n
According to him, “We have mobilised significant domestic resources to
\nfinance critical projects aimed at addressing inequality, ensuring
\nsocial inclusion and sustainable development.”<\/p>\n
He declared that four years after member states committed to the
\nadoption of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA), and the Sustainable
\nDevelopment Goals (SDGs), “the question on how to finance such an
\nambitious agenda remains.”<\/p>\n
The President said: “We believe that achieving the objectives of the
\n2030 Agenda is a task for all nations; however, it should be recognised
\nthat many Developing and Least Developed Countries are in dire need of
\nfinancial assistance far and above what they can mobilise within
\nnational boundaries.”<\/p>\n
He told the gathering that, “As part of my Administration’s effort to
\nimplement the SDGs by the year 2030, we have identified and implemented
\nseveral policies to diversify the revenue base.<\/p>\n
“The Single Treasury Account (TSA), Integrated Personnel Payroll
\nInformation System (IPPIS), Executive Orders on the Voluntary Assets and
\nIncome Declaration Scheme (VAIDS) and Ease of Doing Business have all
\nbeen introduced. The objective is to ensure efficiency in resource
\nmobilisation and avoid over-reliance on revenue from crude oil.”<\/p>\n
The President said that Nigeria had substantially scaled up its efforts
\nto mobilise domestic resources for development purposes, adding that “we
\nhave broadened the formal sector of the economy and carried out major
\nreforms in tax administration, ushering in a progressive, modernised tax
\npolicy and efficient tax collection system.<\/p>\n
“Our effort in this regard could be enhanced by strengthening
\ninternational tax cooperation to minimise incidences of tax avoidance
\nand tax transfer.”<\/p>\n
He noted that Nigeria “is actively involved in the work of the United
\nNations Committee of Experts on International Cooperation in Tax
\nMatters,” pointing out that “We, therefore, support the call for the
\nupgrading of this Committee to an Intergovernmental body that will
\nrepresent the interest of all members and mainstream its work into the
\nbroader development effort of the United Nations.”<\/p>\n
He added that, “My Government is investing heavily in the social sector
\nthrough the introduction of the National Social Investment Programme
\n(NSIP) to achieve Sustainable and Inclusive Development.<\/p>\n
“Through this programme, we have empowered youths; created jobs;
\nincreased enrollment of pupils in public schools; supported the
\nvulnerable groups; provided Nigerians living below the poverty line with
\nmeans of subsistence; and extended material and financial support to the
\nInternally Displaced Persons (IDPs).<\/p>\n
“The funding for this flagship programme is provided annually from the
\nTreasury with requisite budgetary appropriation.”<\/p>\n
Explaining that debt instruments were also important tools for financing
\ninvestment critical to achieving sustainable development for many
\ncountries, President Buhari said that Nigeria was, however, mindful of
\nthe principles of responsible sovereign lending and borrowing and,
\ntherefore, would continue to ensure that funds raised would be utilized
\nfor critical national development.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
President Muhammadu Buhari has described as regrettable the continued loss of public funds through illicit financial flows, saying it remained an impediment to development and effort by developing countries to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":68455,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-69487","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n