The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) says the Federal Government is committed to boosting small-scale businesses in Nigeria.
The Director General of PEBEC, Zahrah Audu, stated this during a town hall meeting with business owners and other stakeholders on Monday in Jos.
She highlighted that the new tax reform is aimed at ensuring ease of doing business for small business owners across the country.
“The tax reform policy is very encouraging to small businesses because persons with low income are exempted from paying tax,” she said.
“The tax reform policy is basically designed to support businesses with low income.
“Also, the Federal Government has empowered the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) to give grants to nano businesses. The government has also made registration easier for such businesses.
“A lot has been done by the government to help formalise the informal sector and encourage businesses to gradually scale up.
“The President has always said there is no gain in taxing poverty. As such, he is encouraging smaller businesses to grow and freeing them from any tax burden,” she added.
Audu explained that the town hall provided her the opportunity to interface directly with business owners and understand the peculiarities of doing business in Plateau State.
She added that the meeting would also bring the sub-national government closer to business operators.
“Earlier, we had a technical session with sub-nationals on ease of doing business, chaired by the Secretary to the State Government. We are now here for a town hall with the organised private sector.
“The idea is for us to interface with business owners towards strengthening the sub-nationals and ensuring that federal policies are implemented at the state level,” she said.
Audu promised to organise similar town halls in all 36 states of the federation.
Earlier, Mrs Joyce Yarnap, Plateau State Commissioner for Information and Communication, said the state had made significant progress on ease of doing business.
She, however, noted that the state is focusing on creating an enabling environment for the agriculture, mining, and tourism sectors to thrive.
“One of the main focuses of this administration is to develop our economy. So, we have paid attention to agriculture, tourism, and mining as the key economic drivers for Plateau.
“At the end of this meeting, we should be able to create an enabling environment for our agriculture, mining, and tourism sectors to thrive,” she said.
Background:
PEBEC was established in 2016 to serve as Nigeria’s foremost institutional platform for driving business environment reforms and strengthening investors’ confidence across the federation. It was specifically created to eliminate bureaucratic and legislative impediments to enterprise, improve regulatory efficiency, and position Nigeria as a globally competitive destination for investment, innovation, and economic growth.
