Adedeji: Technology key to success of Nigeria’s new tax laws
The Executive Chairman of the Nigerian Revenue Service (NRS), Dr. Zacch Adedeji, has said that technology will play a major role in making Nigeria’s new tax laws work effectively. Adedeji
The Executive Chairman of the Nigerian Revenue Service (NRS), Dr. Zacch Adedeji, has said that technology will play a major role in making Nigeria’s new tax laws work effectively.
Adedeji spoke on Wednesday while delivering the maiden convocation lecture of the Federal Polytechnic, Ayede, in Ogo-Oluwa Local Government Area of Oyo State. His lecture was titled, ‘The Role of Technology in Implementing Nigeria’s New Tax Laws: Challenges, Prospects, and Implications for National Development.’
In a statement issued by his Technical Assistant on Print Media, Sikiru Akinola, the NRS chairman explained that the country’s new tax laws represent the biggest change to Nigeria’s tax system in the last 50 years.
“Nigeria has recently enacted a new set of tax laws, representing the most significant restructuring of our nation’s fiscal legislation in 50 years. While public conversation often frames these changes as legal reforms, and that is true, it is also an incomplete picture,” Adedeji said.
He explained that the new laws go beyond changing tax rates or adjusting definitions. According to him, they are designed to change how the entire tax system operates.
“These laws are not merely changing rates, definitions, or administrative powers. They are quietly redefining how authority operates within the tax system. This is a complete structural overhaul, signaling the end of tax collection as a manual task and the beginning of tax intelligence,” he said.
Adedeji noted that the new laws assume the existence of a modern digital system. He said they are built on reliable taxpayer identification, data sharing among institutions, traceable transactions, automated processes and stronger enforcement.
“In other words, these laws are built for a digital environment. They cannot function properly in a manual, fragmented, paper-based system. The implication is clear: without technology, the laws remain aspirational. With technology, they become operational,” he stated.
He said the transition to a digital tax system is central to the mandate of the NRS. According to him, tax administration in the past relied heavily on human discretion in deciding who is registered, assessed, audited or penalised.
“While discretion is not inherently evil, excessive discretion creates inconsistency, which in turn breeds mistrust and drives non-compliance,” Adedeji said.
He identified infrastructure gaps, shortage of skills, lack of trust and resistance to change as some of the major challenges facing tax administration in Nigeria. However, he expressed confidence that upgrading the tax system for a digital environment would help address these problems.
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Speaking on the benefits of a technology-driven system, Adedeji said one of the biggest advantages is the ability to increase government revenue without raising tax rates.
“One of the most important prospects of a technology-driven tax administration is the ability to expand the tax base without increasing tax rates. This matters deeply in a society where citizens already feel overburdened,” he said.
He explained that technology would help government see more economic activities that were previously outside the tax net.
“By improving visibility and bringing previously unseen economic activity into view, technology levels the playing field. When compliance broadens, the pressure on the existing base reduces, fairness improves, and legitimacy grows. This is how modern tax systems grow revenue sustainably,” he added.
In his remarks, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abass, urged the graduating students to be good ambassadors of the institution and continue to seek more knowledge. He was represented by Senator AbdulFatai Buhari, who represents Oyo North.
Abass also commended Adedeji for leading reforms in tax administration in the country.
The Chairman of the institution’s Governing Council, Yakubu Datti, praised the NRS boss for driving changes in Nigeria’s tax structure.
The Rector of the Polytechnic, Dr. Taofeek Adekunle Abdul-Hameed, encouraged the graduating students to take inspiration from Adedeji, noting that he started his academic journey in a polytechnic before rising to national prominence.
