The Kano Internal Revenue Service (KIRS) has called on business owners in rural areas to adopt the newly introduced electronic tax (e-tax) platform, emphasizing its benefits in making tax payment more accessible and transparent.

Rislan Mukhtar Ahmed, Head of Taxpayer Services at KIRS, made this appeal during a two-day event organized by Transparency and Accountability in Totality (TnT), also known as Follow Taxes, in Kano.

"Taxpayers can now pay their taxes at their convenience from the comfort of their homes or shops," Ahmed explained. "With access to a smartphone, you can use the e-tax platform to pay personal income tax, property tax, or even business taxes. Even if you lose your phone, your account is retrievable."

While acknowledging that the platform is still evolving and some services may require physical visits to KIRS offices, Ahmed emphasized that the convenience offered by the e-tax system represents a significant improvement over traditional methods.

For rural business owners without smartphones, Ahmed suggested visiting the nearest internet café or seeking assistance from trusted individuals with internet access. "The world is advancing. If you don't have access, go to the nearest cyber café or ask someone you trust. Doing that will even fast-track the deployment of tax agents to those areas to assist," he advised.

The event, titled "Campaign for Gender Responsive Taxation," brought together women entrepreneurs and tax officials to raise awareness about tax rights and responsibilities, particularly for women in the informal sector.

Mrs. Chika Oko, representing the International Budget Partnership, highlighted the campaign's success in helping women understand how taxation affects their businesses. "We've recorded success stories already, with more women understanding their tax rights. This has helped many improve their businesses," she noted.

According to Oko, the initiative aims to reach at least 5,000 women in Kano who will then engage with government and other stakeholders to address tax challenges affecting their businesses.

Halliru Ahmed Khalifa, Executive Director of TnT Follow Taxes, described the program as a training of trainers initiative. "They are supposed to go back to their clusters of businesses and also train other members. That's why we're mostly having the heads of most businesses here for this engagement," he explained.

Khalifa added that participants are expected to step down the training to at least 2,000 other women in the next three months, with support materials and technical assistance provided to help them achieve this goal.

The training also focused on grievance redress mechanisms, showing participants how to report illegal or excessive taxation and engage directly with revenue authorities.