Manufacturing leads Nigeria’s N9.21 trillion corporate tax surge in 2025

LAGOS — the manufacturing sector solidified its position as the primary driver of Nigeria’s corporate tax revenue, contributing a total of N881.29 billion ($576.36 million) in Company Income Tax (CIT) throughout the 2025 fiscal year.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reveals that the industrial sector led all other categories in fiscal contributions, even as the federal government recorded a landmark N9.21 trillion in total CIT collections for the year, representing a 41% increase from the N6.53 trillion collected in 2024.

The manufacturing sector’s performance underscores its role as a critical pillar of the government’s non-oil revenue strategy. Throughout 2025, the sector consistently outperformed other high-growth areas, including mining and financial services.

In the third quarter alone—the year’s peak period for tax collection—manufacturing accounted for N271.34 billion, or roughly 26.3% of all domestic CIT payments. This was followed closely by mining and quarrying at N244.86 billion, and the financial and insurance sector at N207.00 billion.

Despite the record-breaking annual figures, the report highlights a significant downturn in the final months of the year. Total CIT collections plummeted by nearly 50% in the fourth quarter, dropping to N1.49 trillion from the N2.96 trillion high seen in Q3.

Analysts suggest this volatility reflects broader macroeconomic pressures, as businesses across the manufacturing and services value chains navigated fluctuating operating costs and inflationary trends in the latter half of the year.

The concentration of tax revenue remains high, with Manufacturing, Mining, and Financial activities together accounting for nearly 60% of the total corporate tax haul. While the Information and Communication sector contributed N80.17 billion in Q3, it remains a distant fourth in terms of overall fiscal weight compared to the industrial giants.

The 2025 data suggests that while the Nigerian Revenue Service (NRS) has successfully expanded the tax net to reach N9.21 trillion, the sustainability of this growth remains heavily tethered to the health of the manufacturing sector.