DIGITAL ECONOMY

The rapid evolution of the digital economy presents both opportunities and challenges for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria. Despite the growing significance of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in business operations, many SMEs struggle with inadequate digital infrastructure, limited ICT skills, security concerns, and restricted access to digital markets. This study develops an ICT-Readiness Framework tailored to the Nigerian SME landscape, addressing these challenges and providing a structured approach for digital adoption. The framework consists of six key components: Infrastructure Development, Digital Literacy, and Access to Digital Markets, Policy & Regulatory Support, Innovation & Sustainability, and Monitoring & Evaluation. To ensure its practicality, the framework was implemented as a C program, enabling SMEs to assess their ICT readiness, identify gaps, and receive actionable recommendations. The system was successfully executed, providing accurate evaluations based on SME-specific inputs. Findings from the implementation demonstrate that the framework can effectively guide SMEs in enhancing their ICT adoption by improving connectivity, promoting digital skills, expanding market reach, ensuring policy compliance, and fostering innovation. By adopting this structured approach, Nigerian SMEs can better position themselves for growth in the digital economy. This study contributes to the ongoing discourse on SME digital transformation by offering a practical, data-driven solution for ICT readiness. Future research can focus on expanding the framework to include artificial intelligence-driven assessments and cloud-based integration for broader accessibility.

The study examines the influence of the digital economy on the effectiveness of tax administration in Nigeria. Despite the rapid growth of Nigeria’s digital sector—valued at over ₦150trillion in transactions by 2020—the nation’s tax-to-GDP ratio remains one of the lowest in Africa, at about 6%. This paradox underscores inefficiencies in traditional tax administration and highlights the need for digital transformation. The research employed a survey design, drawing data from 100 respondents comprising staff of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), State Internal Revenue Services (SIRS), registered taxpayers, and tax consultants. Primary data were collected through a structured questionnaire validated by experts, with reliability confirmed via Cronbach’s Alpha (0.78). Descriptive statistics, Chi square tests, and multiple regression analysis were used for data analysis. Findings revealed that the digital economy significantly enhances tax administration effectiveness by improving transparency, expanding the tax base, and reducing opportunities for corruption and leakages. Technology infrastructure was found to play a vital role, though challenges such as poor internet connectivity and weak system integration persist. Furthermore, a strong positive relationship was established between digital economy adoption and tax revenue performance, indicating that greater digital inclusion promotes sustainable revenue mobilization. The study concludes that while Nigeria has made progress through digital tax reforms, infrastructural and awareness gaps still hinder full optimization. It recommends increased investment in ICT infrastructure, improved taxpayer sensitization, and stronger institutional capacity to leverage digital tools for efficient and transparent tax administration

The broad objective of this study is to determine the link between board diversity and firm financial performance of quoted manufacturing industry in Nigeria the specific objectives are to evaluate how board gender affect financial performance of quoted manufacturing industry in Nigeria, ascertain the extends to which board professional background affect financial performance of quoted company in Nigeria and to examine the relationship between board ethnicity and financial performance of quoted manufacturing company in Nigeria. The relevant data for the study covers a period of 6 years (2018 to 2023) all manufacturing company Nigeria. This study employs the descriptive statistics, ordinary least square (OLS) multivariate regression analysis. Base on the result it could deduce that there is a relationship between board diversity and firm financial performance. On the other hand, Board gender diversity and board ethnicity was statistically insignificant at 5% level. While board educational background and board age were not statistically significant at 5% level.

The broad objective of this study is to examine the impact of board attributes on tax aggressiveness in Nigeria. The data were obtained from the annual reports of individual DMBs submitted to Nigerian Stock Exchange. Therefore, the data needed was extracted from the audited financial reports of the selected firms within the periods of five years. There is a positive and significant relationship between board size and tax aggressiveness. There is a positive and insignificant relationship between board diversity and tax. There is a negative and significant relationship between ownership concentration and tax aggressiveness. There is a negative and insignificant relationship between managerial ownership and tax aggres siveness and there is a negative and significant relationship between foreign ownership and tax aggressiveness. The board of directors of corporate organizations in Nigeria should restructure the board in terms of diversity. We recommend this will ensure there is adequate mix of directors consisting of female
and male, nationality mix, size, educational qualification professional training to possibly influence the operation performance, including tax expense reduction.