Abubakar Jimoh
The Civil Society Legislation Advocacy Centre (CISLAC)’s attention
has been drawn to the persistent nation’s revenue leakages and sharp cut in the
2016 budgetary allocation to health sector, despite the rising challenges
confronting child and family health in the country.
A recent report by Tax Justice and Governance Network
(TJ&GN) reveals that revenue leakage arising from corporate tax incentives granted
multinational companies after the end of initial five-year tax break has cost
Nigeria billions of dollars, disclosing Nigeria lost over US$20 billion to tax
fraud evolving from incentives between 2010 and 2014.
The corporate tax incentives in the analysis of Tax Justice
Network Africa, include reduction in corporate income tax, rates and tax
‘holidays’ offered by governments to investors for specified periods, to
attract new foreign direct investment by companies operating in special
economic zones.
In a recent published comparative report by ActionAid on tax
incentives granted over the years by four African countries—Nigeria, Ghana,
Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal, Nigeria recorded the biggest loss of about $2.9
billion (N577 billion) to tax waivers annually. The loss according to the
report is more than the Federal Government’s annual budget to the health sector.
The report further stated that the tax holiday extension
meant the loss of about $2 billion in revenue, and the rolled over allowances
where the same tax was effectively foregone twice, a further $1.3 billion,
adding that tax foregone in the first five years was not counted, as this was
the normal tax break.
It would be recalled that in 2014, Revenue Mobilisation
Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) had raised alarm over the incessant
loss of the nation’s revenue to tax waivers. It was on this observation that Nigeria
Customs Service (NCS) reported that between 2011 and 2013, import waivers
granted various individuals and groups by the Ministry of Finance cost the
Federal Government N1.4 trillion.
CISLAC finds it worrisome that despite persistent decrease in
nation’s revenue from the oil and gas sector, the government has remained adamant
to innovatively embrace alternative sources of funding by blocking identified
massive revenue leakages and redirect revenue therefrom to support important
sector like health.
Meanwhile, in 2013, a study conducted by CISLAC gathered that
in Nigeria, one in 13 women dies during pregnancy or childbirth, and 12% of
children die before reaching the age of five. The study observed that every 10
minutes one woman dies from conditions associated with childbirth; and only 39%
births take place with assistance of medically trained personnel, coupled with
the scarcity of skilled attendants, absence of personnel, among other factors
impeding the effectiveness of health services in the country. The identified
factors are largely attributed to poor budgetary allocation to health sector.
Similarly, the Association for the Advancement of Family
Planning (AAFP) has confirmed that Child Spacing has direct impacts on the
health of the family and grossly the economy of a nation as a whole with
tendency to mitigate maternal and child deaths in the country. Yet, budgetary
allocation to Child Spacing in the contexts of Nigeria Family Planning
Blueprint and the Costed Implementation Plans is an endemic challenge.
Also, the recent announcement by the World Health
Organisation (WHO) declaring Nigeria free from the longtime dreadful polio
endemic may soon resurge in the absence of provision of adequate finances by
the government to sustain intervention on Routine Immunization in the country.
Consequently, as the Nation Assembly deliberates on 2016 Appropriation Bill, there
are serious public outcries by various stakeholders advocating for effective
child and family health in Nigeria such as Community Health Research Initiative
(CHR) agitating for adequate finances for immunization to ensure sustainability
and avert future resurgence of polio virus.
With over 11 million stunted children, Nigeria is without
doubt confronted with the daunting challenge of malnutrition and ranks second
with highest number of stunted children globally. Civil Society Scaling-up
Nutrition (CS-SUNN) has reported that malnutrition contributes to nearly half
of all child deaths globally, amounting to more than 3 million children each
year. The country continues to face malnutrition challenges as a result of inadequate
budgetary allocation to nutrition line items.
Pneumonia and diarrheal diseases remain the major killers of
children, with no fewer than 2.1 million Under-5 years and neonatal deaths
occurring in Nigeria in 2014. As stated by the Pharmaceutical Society of
Nigeria (PSN). The country signed into 15 essential commodities in the United
Nations Commission on Life-Saving Commodities (UNCoLSC) recommendations, among
which three are itemized for the survival of the Under-5 death. The recommended
commodities for the survival of the Under-5 include: Amoxicillin antibiotic in
dispersible tablet form (amoxicillin DT) as first line treatment in the
management of childhood killer pneumonia disease; and Zinc and Oral Rehydration
Salt Solution (Zn/ORS) both for the treatment of childhood diarrheal disease. However,
efforts to tackling childhood killer diseases have been impaired by lack of specific
budget line for the quantification and procurement of the recommended
commodities at all levels.
