•Katsina, Borno, Bayelsa, four others on bottom ranking
By Peter Uzoho
A new report by the Economic Confidential, an intelligence magazine, has indicated that the N398 billion generated as Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) by Lagos State in 2019 is higher than those of 20 other states put together.
The report, which was released yesterday, showed that in 2019, the IGR generated by Katsina, Borno, Bayelsa and four other states were far below 10 per cent of their receipts from the Federation Account Allocations Committee (FAAC) in the same year.
The Annual States Viability Index (ASVI) released by the Economic Confidential also showed that without the monthly disbursement from FAAC, many states remain unviable and cannot survive.
The IGR are generated by states through Pay-AS-You-Earn (PAYE) tax, direct assessment, road taxes and revenues from Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
The IGR of the 36 states of the federation totalled N1.3 trillion in 2019 as compared to N1.1 trillion in 2018, an increase of about N200 billion.
According to the report, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) generated N74 billion against N30 billion received from the Federation Account in the same period.
Lagos State remained steadfast in its number one position in IGR with a total revenue generation of N398 billion compared to FAAC allocations of N270 billion.
It is followed by Ogun State, which generated N70.92 billion in IGR, compared to N92 billion received from FAAC, representing 77 per cent. Rivers got N140 billion compared to FAAC of N219 billion, representing 64 per cent difference and Kwara State, has maintained its impressive IGR by generating N30 billion compared to FAAC receipts of N80 billion.
Others with impressive IGR include Kaduna with IGR of N44 billion compared to FAAC receipts of N129 billion representing 35 per cent; Enugu generated N31 billion compared to N103 billion from FAAC, representing 29 per cent; Ondo with IGR of N30 billion compared to N103 billion from FAAC representing 29 per cent; Edo with IGR of N29 billion compared to FAAC allocations of N108 billion, representing 27 per cent and Anambra with IGR of N26 billion compared to FAAC receipts of N98 billion, representing 27 per cent.
Also, Cross River State earned N22 billion IGR against FAAC receipts of N99 billion, representing 25 per cent.
The 10 states with impressive IGR generated N894 billion in total, while the remaining 26 states merely generated a total of N440 billion in 2019.
The report showed that most states have improved their IGR compared to previous years.
In 2019, only seven states generated less than 10 per cent IGR compared to 17 states in 2018.
The seven states may not survive without the Federation Account due to their extremely poor internal revenue generation of less than 10 per cent compared to their federal allocations.
Top on the list is Katsina, which generated the poorest and lowest IGR compared to its federal allocation in 2019.
It realised a meager N8 billion compared to a total of N136 billion received from the FAAC in 2019 representing six per cent.
It is followed by Kebbi with IGR of N7.3 billion compared to FAAC receipts of N100 billion representing seven per cent; Borno, N8 billion compared to FAAC allocations of N121 billion representing seven per cent and Taraba with IGR of N6.5 billion compared to N86 billion FAAC receipts, representing eight per cent.
Others include Bayelsa, with IGR of N16 billion compared to N176 billion of FAAC receipts, representing nine per cent; Yobe with IGR of N8.4 billion compared to N88 billion of FAAC allocations, representing nine per cent and Gombe with IGR of N6.8 billion compared to N75 billion of FAAC allocations, representing 75 per cent within the period under review.
The report noted that the seven poor states with lower IGR may not stay afloat outside the monthly allocations from FAAC due to lack of initiatives for revenue generation drive coupled with arm-chair governance.
According to the report, some of the states cannot attract investors due to socio-political and economic crises, including insurgency, kidnapping, banditry and herdsmen-farmers clashes.
The Economic Confidential ASVI further showed that only three states in the entire Northern region have IGR above 20 per cent in comparison to their respective allocations from the Federation Account. They are Kwara, Kaduna and Kano states in that order.
However, 10 states in the South recorded over 20 per cent IGR in 2019.
They are Lagos, Ogun, Rivers, Enugu, Ondo, Edo, Delta, Anambra, Cross River and Delta states.
Only Bayelsa State has the record of having the poorest IGR of less than 10 per cent compared to its receipts from FAAC in the South in 2019.
