By Gloria Ikibah
Nigeria is setting its sights on a projected N40.7 trillion in taxes, royalties and mineral revenues for 2026, following sweeping tax reforms that have expanded the mandate of the National Revenue Service (NRS).
The Executive Chairman of the NRS, Zach Adedeji, disclosed the ambitious target on Wednesday when he appeared before the House Committee on Appropriations alongside members of the President’s Economic Team, including the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, and the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Atiku Bagudu. 
The session focused on reviewing the performance of the 2025 budget and examining proposals for 2026.
Adedeji explained that recent reforms transferring petroleum and mineral royalties, along with other revenues, to the NRS had significantly broadened the agency’s scope.
“In the light of the tax reforms that transfer petroleum and mineral royalty and other revenue to the NRS, the total target for taxes, royalty and other minerals is 40.7 trillion.
“We believe that with the support of the House that we would be able to achieve what we propose,” he said.
The NRS chief detailed what he described as a strong performance in 2025.
“For the year 2025, the revenue target for the service was 25.2 trillion, an increase of 3.5 trillion compared to actual revenue collected in 2024. The service has succeeded in 2025 target by collecting 28.23 trillion. This is due to exceptional performance from non oil taxes.
“Non oil taxes exceeded their target by collecting 21.46 trillion an increase of 3.4 trillion. Meanwhile oil taxes fell short of the target by 5.2 percent. Overall the service exceeded it’s target by 3 trillion which is 12 percent compared to the target we had for 2025.
“When you compare 2025 performance to 2024, the service collected 6.5 trillion more what we did in 2024. That is an increase of 30.3 percent. This is driven significantly by non oil taxes”, he added.
Looking ahead, he said projections for 2026 are built around improved oil output forecasts.
“For the 2026 target in the light of the forecast that we have for oil, from that 25.2 trillion that we did last year, we forecasted that we would do 32.14 trillion for 2026 which is N3.85 trillion higher than the actual collection in 2025. The increase is forecast on oil related fo non oil is due to higher production forecast from N1.7 million per day in 2025 to 1.8 million barrels per in 2026″, the NRS boss noted.
During the session, lawmakers questioned the reported zero capital performance in the 2025 budget, pressing the economic team for explanations.
Finance Minister Wale Edun said the current administration inherited a fragile fiscal structure marked by heavy reliance on ways and means financing to cover large deficits, alongside fuel subsidy funding arrangements managed through the national oil company.
He described the approach as unsustainable and said corrective measures were necessary to restore macroeconomic balance. According to him, President Bola Tinubu halted unchecked ways and means financing, which had reached N30 trillion, a move he said was essential for stability, though it created a sizeable funding gap.
He added that the specific issue of capital performance in the 2025 budget had been delegated to the Minister of State for Finance, who has been invited to appear before the committee.
Budget and National Planning Minister, Atiku Bagudu explained that previous engagements with the National Assembly resulted in an agreement to roll over 70 per cent of the 2025 capital expenditure into 2026.
On budget performance reporting, he noted that his ministry relies on data from the Office of the Accountant General and the Ministry of Finance.
“Steps are being taken. The president has demonstrated that he has issued an executive order which we believe is consistent with the agreement reached that 2026 budget that will be coming will have chances of of it being better funded would be put in place,” he said.
Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, Rep. Abubakar Bichi, said the engagement was necessary to enable lawmakers properly scrutinise the 2026 Appropriation Bill.
“This is for us study and consider and approve the request. We decided to engage the team of the president to discuss the previous performance of the 2025 as well as the proposed 2026.
“We have do decided to engage the NRS Chairman to shed more light on the revenue in terms of the 2026 projections. In 2025 we have achieved about 28 trillion from our revenue, from the target of 25 trillion.
“We need to have more information from you so that Nigerians can know what is going on”, he stated.
As deliberations continue, the spotlight now turns to whether the ambitious 2026 revenue projections — and the broader fiscal reforms underpinning them can translate into sustained economic stability and improved public finances.
