A tax administration reform model for revenue generation in Nigeria

Lower tax revenue generation has affected not only the Nigerian economy but also the level of government expenditure. This research, therefore, pursues the following objectives: (a) to identify the tax administrators’ inputs required for tax revenue generation; (b) to identify the taxpayers’ inputs required for tax revenue generation; (c) to analyze the tax administration’s transformation processes for tax revenue generation; and (d) to analyze the association between transformation processes and the tax administrators’ output for tax revenue generation. In achieving these objectives, a case study approach was employed in which data were collected from face-to-face interviews with 20 Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) officials. A self-administered questionnaire was also distributed to 419 taxpayers in Abuja. The findings on the first objective indicate that there is no congruency between tax administration and legislative, companies, judiciary and the executive as well as banks. The result further shows that FIRS performance is affected by a lack of required tangible and intangible resources and inadequate knowledge of employees of the previous challenges and achievements recorded by FIRS in carrying out their mandates. Secondly, the findings reveal that the Nigerian government does not play a great role in providing taxpayers with a safe environment, employment opportunity, and taxpayer education that will enhance voluntary compliance. Thirdly, the study finds congruence among tasks, employees, and formal and informal settings in FIRS. Fourthly, the study discovers that performance is evaluated by the degree of loyalty an employee has to his/her supervisor and not based on the quality and quantum of the work delivered. The main policy implication of this study is that Nigeria can ensure tax compliance and greater tax revenue generation by adopting the Performance-Governance Model of Tax Administration Reform.