Kenya’s Beating Nigeria at Its Own Revenue Game , Here’s Why That Stings
The Big Picture: Kenya rakes in roughly 15 % of its GDP in taxes, while Nigeria still struggles to break the 10 % ceiling, TechCabal reports. With Abuja scrambling to roll out a sweeping new tax regime on January 1, 2026 Nigerian Tax Laws 2025 - Comprehensive Tax Reform Legislation, the comparison couldn’t be louder.
The Details: Kenya’s $20 billion annual haul comes from a diversified base: income tax, VAT, excise, customs, and even digital-service levies. The Kenya Revenue Authority’s e-TIMS platform and M-Pesa integrations have pulled half the nation’s GDP into traceable mobile money flows. Meanwhile, Nigeria is targeting about $12 billion next year and hoping its four new tax laws,signed in June will close the gap. Critics, however, say Abuja may be putting the cart before the horse. “Fiscal reforms should have commenced before the tax reforms,” economist Tilewa Adebajo told Business Post.
Why It Matters / What They’re Saying: A larger tax net is only helpful if citizens believe the money is well managed. A hard-hitting Businessday op-ed warns that mismanagement, not tax rates, is Nigeria’s true growth killer. Still, signs of progress exist: government officials say more than ₦600 billion in VAT has already been collected from Facebook, Netflix, and Amazon since digital platforms were roped in, according to TV360 Nigeria. And a new provision allowing tenants to claim 20 % rent relief up to ₦500,000 aims to soften the blow for households, Daily Trust notes.
Around the Tax World
• BRIPAN sounds the alarm on insolvency: The business-recovery group will unpack how the 2026 tax laws could reshape debt workouts at its Lagos conference this week (Guardian).
• Civil society wants plain English: Citizen Monitors urges the government to publish a one-page cheat sheet on what’s changing and when, saying confusion breeds “rumours and panic” (Punch).
• Adland braces for higher PIT: Marketing and PR firms should pencil in personal-income rates of up to 25 % next year, Brand Communicator reminds.
By the Numbers
Tax Stat of the Day: ₦600 billion , the VAT Nigeria has netted from foreign streaming and tech giants since rule changes in 2023 (TV360 Nigeria).
Looking Ahead
All eyes are now on September 25-26, when BRIPAN’s conference could deliver the first industry-wide verdict on whether the 2026 tax rulebook is salvation,or just another headache.
Prepared by MyTax - mytax.com.ng