The Federal Inland Revenue Service on Tuesday in Abuja inaugurated an interagency steering committee that will oversee the implementation of the new electronic invoicing solution also called merchant buyers’ service solution.

The event started with an opening remark by the Chief of Staff to the Executive Chairman of FIRS, Tayo Koleosho, who explained the purpose of the event.

“It is with great pleasure that I welcome you all to the formal inauguration of the E-Invoice Inter-Agency Steering Committee – a critical step in our collective journey towards modernising and strengthening Nigeria’s tax administration system,” Mr Koleosho said.

According to Mr Koleosho, the National E-Invoicing Solution is a transformative national project that will provide real-time visibility into business transactions, enhance compliance, improve efficiency and eventually increase revenue and drive national development.

Mr Koleosho disclosed that the development phase of the e-invoice solution had been completed, adding that the FIRS selected agencies it would collaborate with for the implementation of the electronic invoicing solution across various sectors in the country.

He stated, “As you may recall from our earlier communications, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), under the leadership of our Executive Chairman, Dr. Zacch Adedeji, has been driving forward the National E-Invoicing Solution. This initiative is not just a technological upgrade; it is a transformative national project aimed at delivering real-time visibility into business transactions, enhancing compliance, improving efficiency, and ultimately increasing revenue for national development.

“We are pleased to inform you that the development phase of the solution has been completed, and we are now at the threshold of the pilot implementation. This phase will involve collaboration with key institutions and sectors – and that is precisely where your agencies come in.’’

Mr Koleosho added that the agencies selected to make up the Inter-Agency Steering Committee were carefully chosen to ensure the successful implementation of the e-invoice solution, noting that their presence at the inauguration showed their shared commitment and transparency to the project.

“The Inter-Agency Steering Committee we are inaugurating today has been carefully conceived to provide high-level guidance, facilitate cross-agency coordination, and ensure that the e-invoicing solution is robust, practical, and sustainable. Your presence here, and the calibre of professionals nominated by your agencies, underscores the importance you place on this initiative and your shared commitment to a more transparent and accountable fiscal system,” Mr Koleosho said.

Meanwhile, Technical Lead for the National E-invoicing and founder of D’Accubin Technology Limited, Sadiq Arogundade, stated that the essence of the e-invoice solution was to standardise invoice exchange and creation within the country which to comply with the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for efficient data exchange.

Mr Arogundade stated that the FIRS selected agencies from the government and private sector to make up the steering committee. The committee comprises those from the government sector: The National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Office of the Accountant General of the Federation while those from the private sector are: Seplat, UBA, MTN and Waway.

Speaking about the e-invoice solution, Mr Arogundade said that the key components for the e-invoice solution were the identity, the data exchange and the payment which had been integrated. He also said that the FIRS was collaborating with NIPPS to ensure that the payment interface conforms to the standard and the framework.

Mr Arogundade said, “The data exchange is an interoperable system that allows us to do cross border invoice exchange and also allows business efficiency and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) to ERP.”

He stated that once connected to the system, businesses could easily exchange invoices, regardless of how their invoice was created, adding that the system also ensures authenticity in identity by identifying who the invoice originated from and where the invoice is going to which stands as a source of integrity on the invoice.

However, Mr Arogundade said that the pilot phase would start with large taxpayers that have complex and sophisticated systems that will enable them gather valuable feedback with minimal disruptions.