Hunger and Hardship: The Unmet Challenge of Revenue Target -By Tife Owolabi

Achieving  Revenue target isn’t economic growth for the overall healthy economy. It is just that your CRUDE measure of extracting surplus value is yielding results.

Meeting revenue target doesn’t automatically mean fiscal health If expenditure continues to outpace revenue, Nigeria could still face deficits, inflationary pressures, and cash-flow crises.

Not borrowing locally is not an achievement, what it means is that the local rate is higher and unhealthy and casting your net outside which means government could still be increasing external borrowing which carries currency and repayment risks, especially with a volatile naira.

Also, meeting revenue target speaks to how crude the tax burden has been on the citizens from aggressive taxation, levies, or FX policies that squeeze businesses and households, stifling growth and worsening hardship despite government optimism. It’s just a crude indicator of extracting surplus value, which may not translate to overall economic health or sustainable growth.

However, what is obvious, is the welfare of the masses and the judicious use of those crude funds extracted from the people. The government must demonstrate its ability to reduce the economic hardships occasioned by the crude nature of the tax net which has raised inflation and brought the masses to their knees.

Electricity tariffs have also seen dramatic adjustments. In April 2024, the government raised tariffs for Band A customers, those with a steady power supply, from ₦66 per kilowatt-hour to ₦225, a more than 300% increase. While the intention was to reduce subsidies, the reality is that subsidy payments ballooned, rising from ₦610 billion in 2023 to nearly ₦1.94 trillion in 2024. Despite the hike, service delivery remains poor, and consumers continue to bear the dual burden of high costs and unreliable electricity.

Vehicle documentation has also become more expensive. In June 2025, the Joint Tax Board announced new charges for vehicle registration and licensing. Standard number plates rose from ₦18,750 to ₦30,000, while fancy plates jumped from ₦200,000 to ₦400,000. Fees for articulated plates were increased from ₦30,000 to ₦90,000, and out-of-series plates from ₦50,000 to ₦150,000. Driver’s license renewals also rose, with the three-year license moving from ₦10,000 to ₦15,000, and the five-year license from ₦15,000 to ₦21,000. This sharp rise has added to the already heavy financial obligations of motorists.

Air travel has not been spared from rising costs. Domestic flight tickets, which once averaged ₦50,000 for a return trip between major cities like Abuja and Lagos, have doubled to between ₦90,000 and ₦150,000. International fares saw even steeper increases, with some routes such as London to Abuja rising from about £600 to over £3,000 in less than two years. These skyrocketing fares have made air travel increasingly unaffordable for many Nigerians, particularly business travellers and families who depend on flights for mobility.

Overall, the past two years have been marked by steep price hikes across passports, vehicle papers, air tickets, food items, and electricity. These increases have intensified the cost-of-living crisis in Nigeria, leaving citizens struggling to meet basic needs and raising questions about affordability and economic resilience.And it is sufficient to say that the biggest problem in our hands is hunger brought about by hardships and providing basic amenities will solve many issues which should be the priority of any serious government.

Tife Owolabi is a Development Studies Researcher and he writes from Yenagoa, Bayelsa state.