How Private Sector, Technology Helped In The Growth Of Abia IGR – BIR Boss Gives Details
The Chairman, Abia State Board of Internal Revenue (BIR), Mr Chijioke Okoronka has revealed that the state Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) has been on the increase since the involvement of the private sector with the corporation of the agency.
Mr. Okoronka who stated this during an interactive session with a cross section of the media and monitored by ALL FACTS NEWSPAPER, gave an insight into how the state IGR which was pegged at N15 billion per annum as at 2020, grew to N19.2 billion in 2021 a full year of private sector involvement and progressed the IGR to N19.8 billion in 2022 with a target of hitting N24 billion in 2023.
The chairman noted that the state saw a rapid growth in revenue generation which he attributed to the injection of the Private Sector driven approach which involves the use of technology in revenue collection.
“There were innovations and changes in modern system of doing things that propelled the achievement that we made” the BIR boss Mr Chijioke Okoronka added.
Speaking on the switch from manual to electronic method of revenue collection, Okoronka revealed that Abia state is the first state to switch from manual ticketing to E-ticketing for tricycle (Keke) operators and traders, adding that the move has reduced double ticketing, faking of tickets, among others.
“We moved from manual ticketing to E-ticketing, in fact Abia state was the first state to implement it and it was so good that we extended it to every part of the transport sector and to the markets”.
He also added that there’s a high level of compliance in revenue collection compared to the past due to the clamp down of illegal revenue collection, which has been reduced to about eighty percent through the use of technology.
On what to expect from Abia State Board of Internal Revenue (BIR) moving forward, the chairman posited that the agency will keep leveraging on the solid relationship with the private sector, widen the tax net and continue in the application of technology which makes payment of tax easy.
THE FULL INTERVIEW WILL BE PUBLISHED SOON.
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