The Chairman of Guinness Nigeria Plc, Mr. Babatunde Savage, has expressed worry over the Value Added Tax increase that was recently proposed by the Federal Government and set for the implementation by next year, saying it has the consequence of impacting negatively on manufacturing companies in Nigeria which will also deprive the financial freedom of the common man.
The Chairman made this statement while speaking at the 2019 Annual General Meeting of Guinness Nigeria Plc in Abuja, he said Nigeria remains a challenging environment for doing business despite the rating that Nigeria has been moved on the positive scale for the ease of doing business in Africa recently.
Savage lament over deficit in critical infrastructure such as stable power supply, good road network and a reliable transportation system as the major challenges that have continued to slow down the potential of doing business in Nigeria.
He added, this poor infrastructure has continued to manifest by the continued gridlocks around Lagos port which have limited down access to the port by to timely evacuate raw materials imported which are mended for the manufacturing industries, limiting the timely transporting of products mend for export as well as the finished product.
The Chairman also raised concern over the threat of insecurity that has continued unabated in various part of the country. This has continued to scare away potential investors as well as creating an environment full of uncertainty, savage added.
Savage further explained that the resultant pressure on consumer disposable income was reflected in the performance of most companies delivering below par financial results.
He called on government to make effort in reducing multiple taxations, while noting that for strategic reasons, companies might not be able to transfer the effect of an increase in taxes, such as the excise duties to customers.
However, he noted that despite such multiple challenges in the business environment and extreme competition existing in the brewing industry, Guinness Nigeria remained profitable in its 2019 fiscal year, while the company has remain determine to its commitment to improve on its performance and deliver greater returns on investment for its shareholders.
