In Niger, the military authorities, in economic difficulty since the ECOWAS embargo and economic sanctions following the coup d’état, are seeking, by all means, to keep the country on its feet, financially, to avoid bankruptcy. To this end, the junta has just reinstated the tax on international calls.
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It is a draft decree signed by the junta which reinstates this tax, suspended since 2022. From now on, all incoming international calls will be taxed. Called the tax on the termination of incoming international traffic, it was reinstated due, it is said, to ECOWAS sanctions which are affecting Niger’s economy.
Amount not specified
The amount that will be taken from each call has not been specified but it could generate, per year, nearly twenty billion CFA francs for the benefit of the public treasury.
In 2022, mobile phone companies challenged this tax. It is unknown whether they were, this time, associated with the junta’s decision.
A context marked by sanctions
To improve the country’s finances, under embargo from regional institutions, the junta had already imposed a levy of 10 CFA francs on each mobile phone card loading. In the same vein, the government has just announced the adoption of a budget of more than 2,653 billion CFA francs from its own funds, a budget adopted in a context marked by the maintenance of ECOWAS economic sanctions.
Several measures are planned to revive the national economy.
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