** National Savings Scheme to offer tax incentives as Shettima backs 10-year Capital Market Master Plan

The Presidency and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are moving to mobilise more domestic savings into productive investment as part of efforts to achieve President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s $1 trillion economic target.

Under the initiative, the SEC is to introduce a National Savings Scheme with tax incentives, while Vice President Kashim Shettima is expected to endorse the Nigerian Capital Market Master Plan 2.0, a 10-year strategic framework designed to guide the growth and development of the market.

The measures are expected to feature prominently at the Capital Market Conversation scheduled for October 19, 2026, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The Presidency and SEC disclosed the plans at a joint press briefing in Abuja ahead of the event, which is expected to bring together policymakers, investors, capital market operators, listed companies, market infrastructure institutions and other stakeholders.

Speaking at the briefing, the Technical Adviser to the President on Economic and Financial Inclusion in the Office of the Vice President, Dr Nurudeen Abubakar Zauro, said deepening the capital market was central to the administration’s efforts to mobilise capital, expand investment opportunities and promote financial inclusion.

Zauro said the October 19 event would provide a platform for stakeholders to review developments in the market and identify measures for further expansion.

He said the reforms undertaken by the administration had helped create a more investor-friendly environment, adding that the conversation would also provide an opportunity to showcase the capital market’s achievements and broaden access to investment opportunities.

“It is no longer news that the capital market of Nigeria has been doing very well, especially under Mr President, with all the reforms that are ongoing to make Nigeria an investor-friendly environment,” he said.

According to him, financial inclusion must extend beyond opening bank or investment accounts to ensuring that ordinary Nigerians can participate meaningfully in economic activities and access investment opportunities.

“When you are talking about inclusion, you are not only talking about opening an account; you are also talking about access to basic financial and economic services,” Zauro said.

He added that the reforms were increasingly creating opportunities for low-income Nigerians to participate in the capital market with relatively small amounts of money.

Zauro said the October conversation would focus on investment inclusion, savings mobilisation, digital financial services and the development of products capable of attracting more Nigerians into the investment market.

He linked the initiative directly to the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda and its ambition to grow the Nigerian economy to $1 trillion.

“The whole conversation on that day is deepening the sector to achieve the $1 trillion economy target set by Mr President, and that aligns with his Renewed Hope Agenda,” he said.

Zauro also said the administration remained open to contributions from stakeholders in shaping policies and reforms for the sector.

“Mr President is having an open-door policy whereby people are also encouraged to come together and advise us on the best way we can do it. We believe we don’t know it all, but at least we leverage on people’s advice to see how we can make things better,” he said.

The Director-General of the SEC, Dr Emomotimi Agama, said the proposed National Savings Scheme would serve as an instrument for broadening financial inclusion by providing Nigerians with an avenue to save and have their savings invested for the future.

“The National Savings Scheme, principally, is an inclusion tool wherein every Nigerian is given an opportunity to save, and such savings will now be invested for the future,” Agama said.

He explained that the scheme would incorporate tax incentives, linking the initiative to the Federal Government’s broader fiscal reforms.

According to him, tax reliefs available to citizens below specified income thresholds could increase disposable income among low-income earners and enhance their capacity to save and invest.

The SEC boss also announced that Shettima was expected to endorse the Nigerian Capital Market Master Plan 2.0 at the October 19 event.

Agama described the document as a 10-year strategic framework that would provide direction for the development of the capital market, while establishing measurable indicators for assessing its performance.

“The Nigerian Capital Market Master Plan 2.0 is a 10-year master plan that provides the direction of the market, understanding that the capital market is the barometer of the economy,” he said.

He said the plan would provide benchmarks for measuring the growth and economic contribution of the capital market, including its contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the number of investors participating in the market.

Agama said Shettima’s endorsement would be significant, given his position as Chairman of the National Economic Council and the administration’s broader economic reform programme.

He added that the October 19 engagement would provide an opportunity to assess the Investment and Securities Act against the projected trajectory of the market, particularly efforts to increase the market-to-GDP ratio and expand the investor base.

“These are indicators that are very critical in measuring the progress of our economy.

“With what we have done as market reforms in the last two and a half years, three years to be precise, it is very instructive that government is deliberate at economic emancipation and the growth of the Nigerian state,” Agama said.

Specifically, the Capital Market Conversation is expected to serve as a major policy and investment forum on how to deepen Nigeria’s capital market, unlock domestic savings and channel more private capital into productive sectors of the economy.