The Nigeria Revenue Service has discontinued the road infrastructure tax credit scheme, citing a lack of capacity to verify construction projects carried out under the programme. The chairman of the NRS, Zacch Adedeji, announced the decision on Thursday during a media roundtable, saying the scheme falls outside the agency’s statutory responsibilities.
Adedeji said the mandate of the revenue service is limited to assessing, collecting and accounting for government revenue, and does not extend to appropriation or project execution. He explained that granting tax credits for road construction effectively amounts to an appropriation function, which constitutionally belongs to bodies authorised to allocate and spend public funds. He added that the service does not have engineers to confirm whether road projects have been properly executed.
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The tax credit scheme was approved in October 2017 by former President Muhammadu Buhari to attract private sector investment in road infrastructure by offering income tax credits. Adedeji said concerns about the legality of the programme and the role of the NRS led to its suspension, noting that responsibility for verifying road projects should rest with relevant ministries such as the Ministry of Works.
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