Economy
Nigerian Manufacturers Demand Urgent Slash in 27.5% Interest Rate
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been asked to urgently cut the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR), currently at 27.5 per cent, because it is not helping the economy.
This call was made by the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) in a statement signed its Director General, Mr Segun Ajayi-Kadir.
On Tuesday, the Governor of the CBN, Mr Yemi Cardoso, after the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting in Abuja, announced that members agreed to retain the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at 27.5 per cent after it was fixed at that rate in November 2024.
Reacting to this, Mr Ajayi-Kadir said the rigid stance of the MPC has continued to create unintended consequences that might deepen the parlous performance of the productive sector and earnestly, “beseech the CBN to urgently reconsider its monetary stance.”
He accused the central bank was to seeking to attract speculative foreign portfolio investors at the expense of Nigeria’s manufacturing base, which is now choked by unsustainable borrowing costs.
“A nation that woos foreign portfolio investors at the expense of its real sector may unwittingly be aspiring to build prosperity on the back of volatility.
“We are disturbed by the implicit prioritisation of short-term foreign capital inflows over the long-term health of domestic industries.
“While maintaining a high interest rate of 27.5 percent may temporarily attract speculative foreign portfolio investors, it is doing so at the expense of Nigeria’s manufacturing base, which is now choked by unsustainable borrowing costs,” he said.
Mr Ajayi-Kadir pointed out that what was evident now in the Nigerian economy was the contrast between the widening profitability of the banking sector buoyed by elevated interest margins and manufacturers’ shrinking margins, rising debts, and declining productivity, declaring that this was an economic paradox that must be urgently addressed.
“The current monetary policy trajectory risks turning banks into vaults of idle wealth, while the real economy—where jobs are created and value is added—faces suffocation,” said Mr Ajayi-Kadir, who warned that “a society that rewards intermediaries over producers invites long-term decline,” describing access to affordable credit as “the oxygen that sustains industrial growth,” adding that no economy has ever grown by starving its manufacturers of oxygen.
He further argued that recent disinflationary trends provided justification for the CBN to cut rates as the improvement in the real interest rates has given financial investors higher inflation-adjusted returns.
“Maintaining a high nominal interest rate under current inflation conditions is neither necessary nor justifiable, and will only prolong the pain for manufacturers and consumers alike,” he stated.
“A nation cannot industrialise on the back of prohibitively expensive credit. With the benchmark interest rate held at 27.5 per cent, Nigeria has become the 6th most expensive country to source credit as local manufacturers grapple with an average lending rate of over 37 per cent.
“This policy posture is not only inflationary, but is suffocating the capacity of the manufacturing sector.
“Compounded by other limiting factors, our members—small, medium and even large-scale—are finding it increasingly difficult to stay afloat, expand production lines, or even meet basic operational costs,” Mr Ajayi-Kadir disclosed.
He stated that domestic production would fall with highly-priced credit, which he said could constrain the country to “imports poverty” by relying on extensive importation of manufactured goods.
“Our concerns go beyond the debilitating impact on our numbers business. The ‘Nigeria First Policy,’ which seeks to strengthen local industry and reduce import dependence, may be under severe threat.
“At the heart of its successful implementation lies access to affordable financing to boost capacity utilisation. Unfortunately, the current interest rate regime constrains finance costs for our members, surging by over 44 per cent from N1.43 trillion in 2023 to N2.06 trillion in 2024 and rising.
“This represents a sharp increase that has directly depressed productivity and led to underutilisation of industrial capacity,” the DG stated, noting that high cost of credit has not only diminished the flow of investments into the manufacturing sector but has also dulled the return on existing investments, with Small and Medium Industries hit the hardest.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) distributed about N2.550 trillion from the revenue generated by the nation in June 2026 to the three tiers of government after its July meeting in Abuja.
A statement signed by the Director of Press in the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, Mr Bawa Mokwa, “The N2.550 trillion total distributable revenue comprised N1.809 trillion in distributable statutory revenue and N740.724 billion in distributable Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue.”
It was gathered that a total gross revenue of N4.500 trillion was available in June 2026, with deductions for the cost of collection amounting to N160.744 billion, and transfers and refunds at N1.789 trillion.
According to a communiqué after the gathering, gross statutory revenue of N3.700 trillion was received in June 2026, N1.049 trillion higher than the N2.651 trillion received in the preceding month, while gross revenue of N799.746 billion was generated from VAT, N56.058 billion higher than the N743.688 billion recorded in May 2026.
It was stated that from the N2.550 trillion total distributable revenue, the federal government received N923.438 billion, the state governments got N838.208 billion, while the local government councils were given N591.390 billion, with N197.610 billion allocated to the benefiting states as 13 per cent of mineral derivation revenue.
From the N1.809 trillion distributable statutory revenue, the federal government went away with N849.366 billion, states shared N430.810 billion, local councils took N332.136 billion, while the benefiting states got N197.610 billion as derivation revenue.
From the N740.724 billion distributable VAT earnings, the central government got N74.072 billion, the states received N407.398 billion, and the local government councils were allocated N259.253 billion.
The communiqué further stated that in June 2026, collections from Companies Income Tax (CIT), Capital Gains Tax (CGT), Stamp Duties (SDT), Petroleum Royalties, Gas Flare Penalties, Rent, Mineral Oil Royalties (MOR), Value Added Tax (VAT), Import Duty, and Common External Tariff (CET) Levies increased significantly, while Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT), Hydrocarbon Tax (HT), Mineral Royalties, and Fees declined considerably. Excise Duty recorded only a marginal increase.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) says the rollout of electronic invoicing (e-invoicing) will strengthen tax compliance, curb revenue leakages and improve transparency in tax administration as it moves to fully digitise the country’s tax system.
The Project Lead for the NRS e-Invoicing Project, Mr Mohammed Bawa, stated this at the DigiTax E-Invoicing Compliance Breakfast Session held in Lagos on Wednesday.
The event, organised by DigiTax, an NRS-accredited e-invoicing platform, formed part of efforts to support the agency’s ongoing education and sensitisation campaign on the e-invoicing mandate.
Mr Bawa said the initiative aligns with global trends in tax digitisation and is expected to help improve Nigeria’s tax-to-GDP ratio, which remains one of the lowest in Africa.
According to him, the system will provide the NRS with greater visibility into transactions across sectors, formalise activities within the informal economy and standardise invoice formats nationwide using globally recognised invoice schemas.
He added that e-invoicing would improve operational efficiency for both businesses and tax authorities while supporting the NRS’ transition from manual and electronic tax administration processes to a fully automated system-to-system interaction model.
Mr Bawa noted that the legal framework for implementation is backed by the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, which prescribes penalties for non-compliance.
He disclosed that the NRS has completed onboarding large taxpayers and is preparing to enforce compliance with defaulting entities.
According to him, medium taxpayers are expected to begin compliance in the third quarter of 2026, while onboarding of emerging taxpayers will commence in 2027, with full adoption targeted for all taxpayers by the end of 2028.
Mr Bawa urged taxpayers yet to be onboarded onto the platform to begin the process and work with accredited service providers to ensure compliance.
On his part, Country Director of DigiTax Nigeria, Mr Olumide Akinsola, urged businesses to look beyond their internal systems and assess the compliance status of suppliers and counterparties.
He warned that businesses whose suppliers fail to transmit invoices through the MBS platform risk losing eligibility to claim Value Added Tax (VAT) input credits on such transactions, describing the resulting supply chain exposure as a significant commercial risk that many organisations have yet to quantify.
Mr Akinsola also announced the launch of DigiTax’s white paper, The State of E-Invoicing Readiness in Nigeria, which examines compliance adoption trends and the readiness gap across different taxpayer segments.
He added that DigiTax operates in Nigeria, Kenya, Zambia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), noting that experience from those markets shows businesses that integrate early are better positioned to avoid disruptions when enforcement begins.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The names of about 100,000 companies registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) are about to be deleted for inactivity, especially for failing to file their annual tax returns, Business Post reports.
This information was disclosed by the CAC via a notice signed by its management on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.
The list contains organisations like the Nigeria-Poland Chamber of Trade Invest Ltd, Alariwo of Afrika Ltd, Ovation Sports International, First Union Pension Fund Administrators, Investopedia Limited, Baptist High School Abuja Ltd, and Yobe Aluminium Manufacturing Industries Ltd, amongst others.
In the statement, the commission said its decision to strike off the names of the affected firms from the register aligns with the provisions of Section 692(3) (3) and (4) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), 2020.
However, the affected companies can still salvage the situation by filing all outstanding annual returns and regularising their records within 90 days.
“Please note that companies that fail to comply within the stipulated timeline shall be struck off the register without further notice,” it declared, expressing its continued commitment to providing prompt and efficient registration and regulatory services to the satisfaction of its valued customers.
See the full list below:
