Kogi govt introduces ground rent as part of new tax reforms

Residents of Kogi State are now required to pay for ground rent as part of the taxes paid to the State Government, a tax official announced on Tuesday.

Alhaji Sule Enehe, Chairman of the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service (KGSIRS), made the disclosure during a stakeholders’ engagement on the implementation of the Land Use Charge Law, 2024, held at the KGSIRS office in Lokoja.

Enehe revealed that the service had organised teams of house enumerators, ready to be deployed across the 21 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state.

He explained that the new ground rent was part of ongoing tax reforms aimed at streamlining revenue collection, promoting transparency, and ensuring all stakeholders contributed their fair share to the state’s development.

“This new law is aimed at improving revenue collection, promoting transparency, and ensuring that all stakeholders contribute their fair share toward the development of Kogi State,” said Enehe.

He noted that the KGSIRS had been collecting tenement rates on behalf of local governments, but the collection of ground rent had not yet been enforced.

The Land Use Charge Law was initiated last year, and Enehe stressed the importance of local government chairmen providing support to the enumerators to ensure the initiative’s success.

He encouraged the council chairmen to collaborate with the KGSIRS in making the law’s implementation a resounding success for the state’s future.

Mr Femi Williams, CEO of New Wave Echo System, provided an overview of the law, highlighting its potential to boost the state’s revenue.

He noted that the Land Use Charge had been used by other states for more than 15 years to strengthen their revenue bases.

Exemptions from the Land Use Charge in Kogi State include government-owned properties for public purposes, places of worship, educational institutions, and healthcare facilities.

Additionally, properties owned by traditional rulers for official use, as well as properties below a certain size threshold defined by the law, are also exempted.

In response, the Chairmen of Olamaboro and Lokoja LGAs, Mr Cosmos Atabo and Mr Abdullahi Adamu, assured the public that the chairmen of all 21 LGAs would support the full implementation of the law at the grassroots level.