Osun Targets N5bn Monthly IGR

• Osun Targets N5bn Monthly IGR

The Osun State Government says it has set a target of N5bn monthly Internally Generated Revenue in its quest to provide sustainable development for the citizens of the state.

The Chairman, Osun State Internal Revenue Service, Bicci Alli, said the agency had increased the state’s IGR from a N300m monthly average in 2010 to N1bn monthly average, and the government was now set to further increase the figure by 400 per cent monthly by targeting the primary beneficiaries of its investments in critical infrastructure in the state.

In a statement on Monday, Alli was quoted to have said that the investments had resulted in the overall improvement of economic activities in the state, leading to increased production, job creation and a corresponding improvement in the standard of living of the citizens.

As a result, he said the economy of Osun State grew from N110bn Gross Domestic Product in 2010 to over N800bn last year.

The statement read in part, “The diverse economic activities in trade, transportation, energy, mineral, energy, telecommunication, construction, agriculture and manufacturing, boosted the GDP of Osun State, invariably reflecting in the growth of its IGR. This also debunks the claim that Osun State is a civil service state. Civil servants represent less than one per cent of the 4.2 million residents of the state.”

According to the OIRS chairman, the state government is set to harness various taxes from over 1,000,000 individual taxpayers and 27,000 corporate bodies as against 62,000 individuals and 12,000 corporate bodies before the advent of the Rauf Aregbesola-led administration.

He said figures were expected to increase further based on the new interventions and investments by the present administration, resulting in more tax revenues for the state.

Alli stressed that more tax revenue would accrue to the coffers of the state government from the proactive programmes of several universities in the state, namely Obafemi Awolowo University, Osun State University, Bowen University, Heritage University, Oduduwa University, Redeemers’ University, Fountain University, Adeleke University and Ladoke Akintola College of Medicine.

Other tertiary are the Federal Polytechnic Ede, Osun State Polytechnic Iree, Osun State College of Technology Esa Oke and Osun State College of Education, Ilesa.

The investment in human capital by the current administration, according to the tax expert, will yield bountiful returns in education tax, thereby contributing substantially to the monthly IGR target of the state.

The statement further read, “In line with this, 277 model schools with 1,811 modern classrooms were built or rehabilitated and the schools were equipped with 62,922 sets of chair and table. Every school day in Osun, 253,000 elementary school children receive a nutritious meal produced largely by local farmers, to boost learning as well as boost local production.”