The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), yesterday, called on the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Finance, to step down the proposed Customs and Excise Tariff Amendment (CETA) Bill 2025, to avoid parallel excise frameworks and ensure fiscal coherence.

MAN warned that recent proposals to significantly increase taxes on Sugar-Sweetened Beverages (SSBs) as contained in the Customs and Excise Tariff etc. (Consolidation) Act (Amendment (CETA) Bill 2025 could undermine industrial growth, job creation, investor confidence, and broader macroeconomic stability.

The CETA Bill 2025, according to MAN, seeks to transition excise taxation on SSBs from the current specific rate of N10/L to ‘a percentage levy of retail price.’

But MAN, in a statement released on Monday, on behalf of its members in the Non-Alcoholic Drinks (NAD) sector called on the Federal Government to maintain a balanced, evidence-based, and coordinated approach to excise taxation.

Director General of MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, while reaffirming the NAD sector’s support for Nigeria’s revenue mobilization and public health objectives, urged the Federal Government to adopt a coordinated, predictable, and evidence-based excise framework that aligns with industrial policy goals.

He raised major concern over what he termed as “the increasing fragmentation of Nigeria’s fiscal landscape, where overlapping levies are introduced without adequate coordination or assessment of cumulative economic impact.”

Ajayi-Kadir said the proposed CETA Bill 2025 introduces a parallel excise mechanism that risks undermining the recently introduced Fiscal Policy Measures (FPM) 2026–2028 framework., which was designed to provide predictability and stability for businesses and investors.

The crux of the matter is that conflicting fiscal instruments could weaken investor confidence, distort planning assumptions, and reduce the effectiveness of medium-term industrial policy frameworks such as the Nigeria First Policy and the Nigeria Sugar Master Plan (NSMP II).

MAN kicked that the proposed levy structure, combining a per-litre charge with a percentage of retail price, introduces significant legal and administrative inconsistencies.

According to the Association, Nigeria’s excise system is currently based on ex-factory or ex-warehouse pricing, hence shifting to retail-based valuation would create enforcement challenges and administrative inefficiencies for regulators and manufacturers alike.“Additionally, cumulative taxation across VAT, CIT, import duties, excise, and regulatory levies already places effective tax burdens above 40 per cent for some producers, disproportionately affecting MSMEs and smaller manufacturers,” MAN stated.

Ajayi-Kadir pointed out that the NAD sector remains one of the most resilient pillars of Nigeria’s manufacturing base, accounting for approximately 33 per cent of manufacturing output and sustaining over 1.5 million direct and indirect jobs across production, logistics, agriculture, retail, and MSMEs.

The MAN DG said despite severe macroeconomic headwinds, including inflation, foreign exchange scarcity, and rising energy costs, the sector continues to contribute significantly to government revenue.

For instance, the NAD sector’s tax remittances, according to him, increased from N123 billion in 2022 to N127 billion in 2023, even as firms operate under extraordinary cost pressures.

Ajayi-Kadir also said industry analysis indicates that companies in the sector currently remit between 40–45 per cent of gross revenues in taxes, placing the sector near the upper threshold of sustainable taxation.

Also, many operators have recorded losses in multiple financial years, with taxes in some cases paid from capital rather than profit, raising concerns about long-term viability.

He warned that PwC (2023) projections further indicate that a 10–20 per cent increase in excise duties could reduce sectoral gross value added from N14.3 trillion to N11.5 trillion by 2030, while also contracting employment levels from approximately 1.5 million to 1.2 million and less.

Besides, excise increases, MAN argued, do not operate in isolation but transmit across an interconnected value chain, affecting manufacturers, distributors, farmers, retailers, and consumers.

“Higher taxes reduce demand, compress production volumes, and increase unit costs due to underutilized factory capacity. This triggers a cascade of effects, including reduced agricultural off-take (especially sugarcane under NSMP II), lower logistics activity, and contraction in MSME retail sales.

“Small retailers and informal traders who dominate last-mile distribution are particularly vulnerable, as reduced margins and falling turnover directly affect household livelihoods.

“Consumers, especially low-income households who already allocate over half of their income to food, are likely to face reduced affordability and may substitute formal beverages with unregulated or unsafe alternatives, creating unintended public health risks,” Ajayi-Kadir said.

While also insisting that public health concerns must reflect local evidence, MAN said the sector acknowledges the government’s commitment to addressing non-communicable diseases (NCDs), but emphasised that policy responses must reflect Nigeria’s specific epidemiological and consumption realities.

realities.

“Evidence shows that Nigeria’s per capita sugar consumption remains low at approximately 7.1kg annually, well within WHO-recommended thresholds. Beverages account for only a small fraction of household sugar intake and caloric consumption.

“Contrary to common narratives, there is no conclusive empirical evidence establishing sugar-sweetened beverages as the primary driver of NCDs in Nigeria, which are widely understood to be multi-factorial in nature, shaped by genetics, lifestyle, environment, and broader dietary patterns.

“Furthermore, major global health frameworks, including WHO “Best Buys” and “Quick Buys,” do not classify SSB taxation as a leading cost-effective intervention for NCD reduction,” MAN pointed out.

The Association reiterated its call on the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Finance, to engage the National Assembly to avoid parallel excise frameworks and ensure fiscal coherence by stepping down the proposed CETA Bill.

It also called on government to safeguard the integrity of the Fiscal Policy Measures (FPM) 2026–2028 framework to maintain policy predictability and investor confidence, and reinforce executive-led excise policy coordination to ensure administrative efficiency and consistency.

MAN also wants convened structured stakeholder consultations to co-develop a balanced excise framework grounded in data and economic realities, as well as develop a post-2028 excise roadmap that integrates public health objectives with industrial growth and employment protection.

Ajayi-Kadir said MAN, on behalf of the NAD sector, remains committed to partnering with the Federal Government to advance Nigeria’s economic transformation agenda.

He, however, insisted that sustainable progress requires policies that are coherent, evidence-based, and sensitive to Nigeria’s macroeconomic realities.

“A balanced excise framework will ensure that Nigeria does not have to choose between public health and economic stability but can achieve both through collaboration, data-driven policymaking, and long-term vision,” he emphasised.