The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) will immediately begin collecting and analysing gender-disaggregated data across its digital tax platform, TaxProMax, in a move to align fiscal policy with gender equity goals and strengthen inclusive governance nationwide.
Zacch Adedeji, executive chairman, FIRS, announced the directive on Tuesday at the official launch of the agency’s Gender Desk and Women Network (WoN) in Abuja.
The new data policy, which will span all relevant departments, aims to embed equity into the core of Nigeria’s tax administration and enhance the responsiveness of fiscal policy.
“This is not just a symbolic gesture,” Adedeji said. “It is a powerful declaration of our resolve to embed equity at the heart of our operations. Gender-disaggregated data will better inform our policies and significantly improve outcomes for all Nigerians.”
The TaxProMax platform — Nigeria’s digital hub for tax compliance — will now play a pivotal role in capturing and analysing gender-specific information to shape future tax reforms and public finance strategies.
Represented by Dick Irri, coordinating director, Medium and Government Taxpayers Group (M>G), Adedeji also urged all policy, finance, planning, and statistics units within FIRS to integrate gender-responsive budgeting into their processes, stressing that “every programme, resource allocation, and evaluation must be viewed through the lens of gender equality.”
The launch of the Women Network (WoN) — envisioned as a platform for mentorship, leadership development, and professional growth — was widely celebrated at the event as a cornerstone of institutional transformation.
“We are positioning FIRS not just as a revenue agency, but as a model for gender-responsive governance in Africa,” Adedeji stressed.
As part of next steps, Adedeji called for urgent collaboration with the ministries of women affairs, industry, and trade, as well as the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) to define and recognise women-owned and women-led businesses within Nigeria’s formal economy.
This standard, he said, should be embedded into business registration and regulatory frameworks.
Backing the move, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, minister of women affairs, praised FIRS for what she called “a defining moment” in the country’s gender mainstreaming journey. She described the initiative as not only a boost for institutional credibility but a strategic investment in Nigeria’s economic future.
“FIRS is not just collecting taxes,” she said in her keynote address. “FIRS is investing in Nigeria’s future. You are proving that fiscal systems are not just about revenue, but also about people. About dignity. About equity. About nation-building.”
Sulaiman-Ibrahim linked the development directly to the federal government’s broader ambition under the Renewed Hope Agenda, which targets the economic empowerment of 10 million women by 2027.
She emphasised that FIRS is setting a new standard for how public institutions should align with the National Gender Policy (2021–2026) and global commitments such as the Beijing Declaration.
The minister laid out clear expectations for the Gender Desk and Women Network, calling for gender-responsive budgeting to become integral to FIRS’s revenue policies and for recruitment and promotion practices to reflect a deliberate drive toward gender parity.
“Women must be influential, visible, and valued at every leadership table,” she stated.
She further emphasised that institutional reforms must go beyond policy statements. “Policy without practice is hollow. Implementation without institutionalisation is unsustainable,” the minister said.
