The government of Zamfara State claimed that because it chose not to rely on funds from the Federal Account Allocation Committee, it had the largest increase in internally generated revenue.
Sulaiman Idris, the governor of Zamfara’s spokesperson, revealed this in a statement on Monday. With an IGR rise of 240.44 percent to N22.61 billion in 2023 from N6.51 billion in 2022, Zamfara State emerged as the top state.
The government responded to the report by attributing the achievement to a greater push in the state’s revenue-generating elements.
Its reliance on FAAC decreased from 90.52 percent in 2022 to 74.66 percent in 2023, the state noted. Idris reports that the state’s total revenue in 2023 was N144.95 billion, up 65.35 percent from N87.68 billion the year before.
This significant feat can be attributed to the state reversing the decline of 49.75 percent observed in its 2022 IGR, increasing it by 240.22 percent from N6.51 billion in 2022 to N22.16 billion in 2023.
“There were significant increases in components of Zamfara’s IGR year-on-year: its income tax grew by 142.26 percent from N5.03 billion in 2022 to N12.18 billion, licences rose by 5921.22 percent from N22.78 million in 2022 to N1.37 billion in 2023, and fees grew by 3610.38 percent from N82.44 million in 2022 to N3.06 billion in 2023.
“Additionally, fines rose by 1924.52 percent from N24.15 million in 2022 to N491.32 million in 2023, sales grew by 32.49 percent from N772.06 million in 2022 to N1.02 billion in 2023, earnings grew by 542.59 percent from N87.53 million in 2022 to N562.48 million in 2023, and its earnings from other taxes grew by 519.71% from N412.03 million in 2022 to N2.55 billion in 2023.
In addition, the state made money from investment income, reimbursement, rent on lands and other properties, and rent on government buildings, all of which it did not record in the prior year. By investigating its natural resources in partnership with the Federal Government to diversify its revenue base, Zamfara can show that it is dedicated to enhancing its financial sustainability.
“The state’s total revenue increased by 65.35 percent to N144.95bn in 2023 from N87.68bn earned the previous year. Regarding recurrent revenue structure, the state’s susceptibility to external fiscal shocks appeared to have reduced from the previous year as its FAAC dependence decreased from 90.52 percent in 2022 to 74.66 percent in 2023, despite the FAAC allocation rising by 4.93 percent from N62.21bn to N65.28bn. Lastly, the IGR to recurrent revenue ratio for 2023 was 22.16 percent higher than 9.48 percent in 2022.
