Oyedele warns against tax burden on poor people as G-24 seeks concessional lending support

Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, has warned against extra tax burden on susceptible people and productive sectors of the economic system at a time of world financial uncertainty.

Mr Oyedele famous that attributable to world uncertainty and inflationary stress, it’s a incorrect time for governments to impose new taxes on people.

Mr Oyedele spoke after the conferences of the Group of Twenty-Four (G24) on the sidelines of the 2026 annual conferences of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank in Bangkok, Thailand.

“This is the wrong time to impose new taxes or increase the burden of tax, particularly on the vulnerable population and productive sectors of the economy,” Mr Oyedele, who can also be chairman of the G-24, stated.

“The measures, like you ask, will be first for every country to look inwards, looking inward to find areas of savings, areas of revenue mobilisation, but also bearing in mind this is the wrong time to impose new taxes or increase the burden of tax, particularly on the vulnerable population and productive sectors of the economy,” he stated of measures to support the economic system.

Speaking on the steadiness between taxation and debt, he famous that putting a steadiness stays key.

“If you acquire taxes, you elevate the cash now, and that itself has quite a lot of trade-offs. What taxes are you amassing? You acquire taxes from essentially the most susceptible, and this may deprive them of cash to supply meals, well being, schooling.

“Debt is future taxes, so it’s not one or the other. It’s to strike a balance, bearing in mind ultimately that the essence of tax and of debts is to cater for the people.”

The minister defined that debt stays vital for financial development however must be used to support employment and development.

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“Borrowing and debt financing is a necessary condition for growth, and every country emerging, developing must be able to apply debt financing in a way that is overall of positive impact, particularly to stimulate job-rich and inclusive growth,” he stated.

Meanwhile, in its communique, the Intergovernmental Group of Twenty-Four (G24) known as for cheaper concessional financing to ease the burden.

Iyabo Masha, the Director of the G24 Secretariat, famous that there was a change to world debt restructuring structure, and this might assist international locations safe sooner resolutions of their debt considerations.