Tinubu swears in Taiwo Oyedele as minister of state for finance

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on Monday, March 16, swore in Taiwo Oyedele as minister of state for finance at the presidential villa in Abuja.

The swearing-in ceremony took place at the president’s office at about 2:30 p.m., five days after the senate confirmed Oyedele’s nomination.

Oyedele arrived at the villa with his wife and was cleared by security officials.

The new minister wore a navy-blue suit, while his wife was dressed in white traditional attire.

The senate confirmed Oyedele’s appointment through a voice vote following an extensive screening session that lasted more than two hours.

Senate president Godswill Akpabio announced the confirmation after members of the committee of the whole adopted the recommendation.

President Tinubu had, on March 3, transmitted Oyedele’s nomination to the senate in a letter addressed to Akpabio, seeking confirmation in accordance with section 147(2) of the 1999 constitution.

The 50-year-old Oyedele hails from Ikaram-Akoko in Ondo state and brings more than two decades of experience in fiscal policy and tax administration to the role.

Before his nomination, he served as chairman of the presidential committee on fiscal policy and tax reforms, which spearheaded a comprehensive overhaul of Nigeria’s tax system.

The committee, inaugurated in August 2023, produced four executive bills that consolidated more than 60 taxes into fewer than 10 statutes and introduced major reforms, including zero income tax for Nigerians earning ₦800,000 annually or less.

The four bills, the Nigeria Tax Bill, the Nigeria Tax Administration Bill, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Bill, were passed by the national assembly in 2025 after extensive debate.

President Tinubu signed the bills into law on June 26, 2025, and the tax reform acts took effect on January 1, 2026, marking a significant shift in Nigeria’s tax regime.

The reforms also exempted small businesses with annual turnover below ₦50 million from company income tax, capital gains tax, and withholding tax, while introducing incentives for employment and wage increases.

Oyedele spent 22 years at PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he rose to become fiscal policy partner and Africa tax leader before his appointment to head the tax reform committee.

He holds a Higher National Diploma in Accountancy and Finance from Yaba College of Technology and a BSc in Applied Accounting from Oxford Brookes University.

The new minister has also completed executive education programmes at the London School of Economics, Yale University, the Gordon Institute of Business Science, and the Harvard Kennedy School.

He currently serves as a professor at Babcock University and is a visiting scholar at Lagos Business School.

Oyedele replaces Doris Uzoka-Anite, who has been redeployed to the ministry of budget and national planning as minister of state, marking her third portfolio in the current administration.

During his senate screening, Oyedele described his nomination as a call to serve at a critical time when Nigeria faces significant fiscal challenges as well as remarkable opportunities.

“With over two decades of experience working with national governments, multilateral institutions and global corporations, my journey across the private sector, academia and public policy has focused on fiscal governance and economic transformation,” he told lawmakers.

Ardo  Zubairu 

National Secretary 

Renewed Hope: Tinubu Re- Election Project 2027 . Office Phones: 

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