The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said the activities of the Industry Working Groups (IWG) are geared towards ensuring fair tax policies and eliminating every incident of multiple taxation and regulations impacting the Nigerian telecommunications industry.
This is the take-home of the combined second and third quarters 2023 meeting of the group held in Ibadan, Oyo State yesterday and was attended by various stakeholders including the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON).
Addressing the meeting, the Executive Commissioner of stakeholder Management at the NCC, Adeleke Adewolu, disclosed a lot of milestones have been recorded by the industry since the establishment of the IWG over two decades ago, as the platform has proven to be effective in articulating industry concerns in this area and also proffering solutions to these issues.
“Considerable industry gains have been recorded lately, particularly as it relates to the issue of multiple taxation. For instance, His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu recently signed Four Executive Orders designed to curb multiple taxation in the Country,” he said.
He noted that key amongst them is the Executive Order for the suspension of the five percent Excise Duty on telecommunication services as well as Excise Duties escalation on other locally manufactured products,” he said.
He described the gains as laudable as, according to him, they continue to serve as inspiring landmarks for the industry, underscoring what can be achieved when the entire industry comes together harmoniously to speak with one voice on existential concerns undermining the economic health of the communications industry.