Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, has urged tax authorities across West Africa to deepen cooperation in order to boost domestic revenue and reduce the region’s dependence on borrowing and volatile commodity earnings.

Oyedele made the call during a meeting with a delegation from the West African Tax Administration Forum, WATAF, led by its Executive Secretary, Jules Tapsoba Sulio, at the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja. The talks focused on how regional collaboration can accelerate tax reforms, improve compliance with ECOWAS tax directives and modernise revenue collection systems.

The minister commended WATAF’s work since its creation in 2011, noting that the forum has become a key platform for knowledge sharing and technical support among tax administrations in the subregion. He, however, challenged the organisation to move beyond dialogue and take a more assertive role in tracking how member states implement regional tax agreements.

Oyedele proposed the development of practical benchmarking tools and performance dashboards to measure each country’s adherence to ECOWAS tax rules. Such instruments, he argued, would promote transparency, encourage peer learning and help raise tax administration standards across West Africa.

He also urged WATAF to systematically document and showcase successful tax reforms in member countries, particularly in areas such as digitalisation, taxation of the informal sector and broader policy changes aimed at widening the tax net. Highlighting concrete examples, he said, would enable governments to adapt proven solutions rather than working in isolation.

In his remarks, WATAF Executive Secretary Jules Tapsoba Sulio congratulated Oyedele on his appointment and reaffirmed the forum’s commitment to supporting Nigeria and other members through capacity building, technical assistance, research and digital transformation initiatives. He acknowledged Nigeria’s longstanding financial, institutional and technical backing, describing it as central to WATAF’s growth.

Both sides discussed opportunities for deeper collaboration on domestic revenue mobilisation, regional tax harmonisation and institutional strengthening. The conversation aligns with Nigeria’s ongoing efforts to reform its tax system through digital tools, improved administration and policies designed to broaden the tax base and increase non-oil revenue.

WATAF, which brings together tax authorities from across West Africa, aims to foster cooperation, enhance compliance and support regional economic integration by helping countries build more efficient and transparent tax systems.