REVIEW OF FISCAL POLICY FOR ATTAINMENT OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDGS) IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Major challenge facing attainment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) amongst Nations is mobilization of sufficient domestic funds as against foreign aids, grants and donations for addressing developmental and or environmental challenges. Taxation as a major source of Domestic Resource Mobilization (DRM), is generally imposed by government to raise funds for developmental projects, and or encourage environmentally friendly behavior amongst the citizens. However, poor fiscal policy could encourage wasteful consumption of natural resources thereby exacerbating environmental problems and is thus disincentive to the attainment of SDGs in the long run. This review is conducted to conceptualize the manner taxation through Financial and Company Allied Acts (CAMA), 2020 could assist in attainment of SDGs and consequently Sustainable Environmental Management (SEM) in Nigeria. Against this background, the Federal Government of Nigeria promulgated Financial Act, 2020 and the Company and Allied Matters Act CAMA, 2020 to help in capturing the emerging, vast digital/online transactions and in formalizing the hitherto neglected informal sectors into the tax base thus increasing the revenue of the Government respectively. However, increasing of the Value Added Tax (VAT) on essential commodities over the same period would amount to overtaxing particularly the poor. Thus, jeopardizing the potential gains of the two (Financial Act and CAMA, 2020) fiscal policies. Therefore, this study recommends reduction of VAT on essential commodities, removal of the unwarranted tax holidays enjoyed by the affluent and effective administration of tax funds in order to deepen the gains (attainment of SDGs) achieved from the two fiscal (Financial Act and CAMA, 2020) policies in the country.