President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has sworn in Taiwo Oyedele as minister of state for finance.
The brief swearing-in ceremony took place at about 2:30 pm on Monday at the president’s office inside the State House.
While congratulating the new minister, Tinubu thanked Oyedele for accepting the responsibility to serve the country and commended his contributions to Nigeria’s ongoing tax reforms.
“You are just a very dedicated and highly determined individual. It didn’t take much for me to decide where you fit and where you need to be to further help the country,” the president said.
Tinubu also acknowledged that managing fiscal policy and government finances at a time when Nigeria is pursuing economic stability requires commitment and strong leadership.
Oyedele’s inauguration came five days after the Nigerian Senate confirmed his nomination.
During his confirmation screening, the tax expert promised to drive fiscal reforms focused on boosting government revenue, ensuring more realistic budgeting, and strengthening the country’s economic management system.
Tinubu had transmitted Oyedele’s nomination to the senate in a letter dated March 3, 2026, in line with Section 147(2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999.
Oyedele, a native of Ikaram-Akoko in Ondo State, has more than two decades of experience in taxation and public finance.
Before his appointment, the 50-year-old economist chaired the presidential committee on fiscal policy and tax reforms established in August 2023.
Under his leadership, the committee developed four key tax reform bills aimed at simplifying Nigeria’s tax structure. The reforms introduced incentives such as zero income tax for Nigerians earning N800,000 or less annually and exemptions for small businesses with yearly turnover below N50 million.
The four bills — the Nigeria Tax Bill, Nigeria Tax Administration Bill, Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, and Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Bill — were passed by the National Assembly of Nigeria in 2025 and later signed into law by Tinubu on June 26 same year.
The new tax framework officially came into effect on January 1, 2026.
Prior to joining government, Oyedele spent 22 years at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), where he rose to the position of fiscal policy partner and Africa tax leader.
He holds a higher national diploma in accountancy and finance from Yaba College of Technology and a bachelor’s degree in applied accounting from Oxford Brookes University.
The economist has also attended executive training programmes at the London School of Economics, Yale University, the Gordon Institute of Business Science, and the Harvard Kennedy School.
Oyedele currently lectures at Babcock University and serves as a visiting scholar at Lagos Business School.
He succeeds Doris Uzoka-Anite, who was recently redeployed to the ministry of budget and national planning as minister of state — the third ministerial portfolio she has held under the Tinubu administration.
During his senate screening, Oyedele described his appointment as “a call to serve at a time of great economic challenges and opportunities,” promising to support the country’s fiscal management and reform agenda.
