The Federal Government has indicated its plans to conduct mandatory impact assessments on businesses and other tax payers before effecting changes in the current taxes, tariffs and economic regulations with a view to avoiding abrupt decisions that will raise business costs and discourage investment in the country.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele,gave this hint on Monday when he presented the draft Nigeria Economic Policy Framework for public consultation during the opening session of the Nigerian Economic Summit in Abuja.
The minister explained that the draft framework would require policymakers to explain the problem an intervention seeks to address, the evidence supporting it, who will benefit, who will bear the costs and the conditions under which it will end, stressing that “Ad-Hoc rulemaking must give way to transparent, predictable governance.”
Oyedele said Nigeria’s development had been undermined by inconsistent policies and weak implementation rather than a shortage of plans, lamenting that “too often, the progress achieved through one reform is undermined by another policy, while our economic direction is reinvented with changing administrations.”
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While criticizing the announcement of major regulations without sufficient evidence, consultation or time for businesses to adjust, the minister noted such practices in the past had made planning difficult, increased financing costs and prevented job creation.
He clarified: “Policy uncertainty is an invisible tax on enterprise, and unlike most taxes, it generates no revenue for government. It only destroys value and discourages investment.”
Oyedele maintained that better coordination was also necessary because businesses bear the combined costs of decisions taken by different government institutions.
He said: “Businesses do not interact with isolated ministries, departments, or agencies. They experience the cumulative cost of government.
“A tariff must serve as a runway for local industry to take off, never a permanent shelter from competition”, the minister added.
He stressed that economic success should be reflected in household incomes, employment and the ability of small businesses to expand, rather than aggregate growth figures alone, pointing out that “GDP growth matters, but per capita income matters even more.”
The framework, which is still a consultation draft, seeks to establish consistent rules for economic decisions across successive administrations, comes as the NESG summit examines how economic reforms can translate into jobs, higher productivity and improved living standards.
Under the proposed framework, impact assessments would cover interventions including tax adjustments, tariff changes, regulatory restrictions and incentives.
The ministry’s consultation document also lists fiscal and business effects, implementation capacity, risks, performance indicators and review dates among the matters a policy impact statement would address.
Public consultation on the framework opened on October 26 and will close on November 27, 2026. Nigerians are invited to respond to 17 consultation questions through the finance ministry’s website.
The minister said the draft would proceed to the Federal Executive Council for approval and the National Economic Council for endorsement after consultation and validation, urging the NESG, businesses, and other stakeholders to critically appraise the proposals and submit their evidence-based recommendations to the government.
