This is despite recent moves by telecommunication companies
to increase the price of their services as a result of an unfavourable
operating climate.
The telecom tax in the equivalent of a minimum of one kobo
per second for phone calls is a part of the sources of funds required to
finance free healthcare for the Vulnerable Group in Nigeria.
This is contained in the National Health Insurance Authority
Bill 2021 signed by President Muhammadu Buhari last week.
The act includes a provision under Section 26 subsection 1c
which states that the source of money for the Vulnerable Group Fund includes
telecommunications tax, not less than one kobo per second of GSM calls.
The Fiscal Policy Partner and Africa Tax Leader at
PricewaterhouseCoopers, Taiwo Oyedele, said, “S.26 of this new law imposes a
telecommunications tax of not less than 1kobo per second on GSM calls. With
call rates at about 11kobo per second, this translates to a 9 per cent tax on
GSM calls.
“The tax is one of the sources of money to the Vulnerable
Group Fund to subsidise the provision of healthcare to the group defined to
include children under five, pregnant women, the aged, physically and mentally
challenged, and the indigent as may be defined from time to time.”
According to the act, the Vulnerable Group Fund is money
budgeted to pay for healthcare services for vulnerable Nigerians who cannot pay
for health insurance in a bid to subsidise the cost of provision of health care
services to vulnerable people in the country.
For funding, the act provides several options such as basic
health care provision fund to the authority; health insurance levy; telecommunications
tax, not less than one kobo per second of GSM calls; money that may be
allocated to the Vulnerable Group Fund by the Government; motley that accrues
to the Vulnerable Group Fund from investments made by the Council: and grants,
donations, gifts, and any other voluntary contributions made to the Vulnerable
Group Fund.
According to the new act, every resident in Nigeria is
expected to obtain health insurance.
Recently, telecom companies wrote to the Federal Government,
through the Nigerian Communications Commission, on the conditions of the
industry.
The operator under the aegis of the Association of Licensed
Telecommunication Operators of Nigeria proposed a 40 per cent increase in the
cost of calls, SMS, and data as a result of the rising cost of operating in the
nation.