Fiscal Policy
Top stories
African governments are borrowing to drive growth, but rising debt costs and weak revenues are forcing tougher fiscal rules and sharper trade-offs between stability and development.
Nigeria’s 2026 fiscal strategy hinges on tighter cash control, selective divestments and PPPs. Global precedents offer hope, but execution risks could test credibility and growth.
For businesses and households, the shift means higher tax burdens as policymakers return to a more aggressive revenue mobilisation push.
Local media reports confirm a 5% levy on all mobile airtime and data purchases effective February 8 2026, with proceeds channelled into the state’s national disaster response fund.
Nigeria’s new tax reform redraws how companies structure themselves, by widening the tax net while scaling back the myriad of overlapping levies previously imposed on large businesses.
Nigeria’s tax reforms are pushing compliance into the payments layer. Bujeti is responding by embedding tax logic, controls, and governance directly into business finance workflows.
The exemptions and reliefs—announced by Taiwo Oyedele, Chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, on Monday—represent one of Nigeria’s most comprehensive efforts to simplify taxation, promote equity, and encourage compliance.
Nigeria’s subnationals are learning to earn, not just receive. They’re digitising taxes, reforming budgets, and using infrastructure policy to build fiscal resilience beyond Federal allocations.
The capital injection comes as fiscal uncertainty deepens over Ethiopia’s stalled Eurobond restructuring, which analysts say could complicate access to external funding.
Under the new export framework, companies that fail to meet allocation targets, breach environmental or tax rules, or transfer allocations to third parties will have their quotas revoked.
The move marks a shift from over a decade of debt-driven infrastructure expansion that has left the country with one of Africa’s highest debt service burdens.
While attention has centred on the newly gazetted rules in recent weeks, less focus has been given to the taxes that have been erased.
According to the Finance Ministry document the Islamic bonds will carry a seven-year maturity and pay a fixed annual return of 6% to investors as rental income, in line with Sharia principles.
Following news of the talks, the bond rose by as much as 2.6 cents to trade at 94.88 cents on the dollar, according to Tradeweb data, reflecting investor optimism that a deal may be within reach.
Analysts say the outcome of the new rule will test whether Kenya can strengthen its tax base without discouraging investment from some of the world’s largest digital players.
From Nigeria to Kenya, sweeping tax reforms are rewriting the rules for business and investment in Africa. Join us Sept 30 for the big picture.
Nigeria’s newly gazetted tax laws—set to take effect on January 1, 2026—have triggered intense public debate, much of it driven by misconceptions about key provisions.
Authorities are turning to a fresh vehicle following years of draining the nation’s diamond-backed reserves to plug budget shortfalls.
Under the Nigeria Tax Administration Act (NTAA), the use of a Tax Identification Number (Tax ID) will be mandatory for a range of activities, from banking to business registration, beginning January 1, 2026.
The advance payment requirement comes alongside sweeping reforms to Ethiopia’s tax framework, following the passing of the Income Tax (Amendment) Proclamation on July 17, 2025.