Oyeka Amara Kate is a seasoned public finance expert and currently serves as the Senior Special Assistant on Internally Generated Revenue (SSA–IGR Technical) to the Governor of Anambra State, Prof. Charles Chukwuma Soludo. Her career in tax administration began at the Ogun State Internal Revenue Service (OGIRS), where she spent three years honing her skills before moving to the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS). Over the course of 12 years at LIRS, she rose to the position of tax manager, demonstrating exceptional leadership and technical expertise that paved the way for her transition into public service as a political appointee.
Amara holds a B.Sc. in Accounting from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), Enugu State, and an M.Sc. in Corporate Finance from Babcock University, Ogun State. She is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN), and the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA-UK). She is also an associate member of Women in Management, Business, and Public Service (WIMBIZ), reflecting her commitment to advancing the course of women in leadership.
With over 16 years of experience spanning tax audit, finance, accounting, tax technology, and strategic administration, Amara is widely respected for her contributions to both the public and private sectors. She is a passionate mentor and advocate for gender equity, which led her to establish the Obele Women Empowerment Foundation (OWEF)—a platform dedicated to uplifting women through education, entrepreneurship, and community engagement. Her passion for impact also finds expression in her role as a regular speaker and facilitator, where she shares insights on taxation, business strategy, leadership, finance, and empowerment.
In addition to her public service, Amara is a dynamic entrepreneur. She leads corporate services as executive director at SIGNALHOUSE GROUP, serves as founder and lead mentor at Led2Lead Consulting Limited, and is the MD/CEO and business strategist at Seagreen Media Limited. Her influence extends into professional development and governance, where she serves as team lead for the Management Information (MI) subject in ICAN examinations and contributes as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) in taxation to ICAN’s Members’ Continuous Professional Development (MCPD) brochure—a role she has held for over seven years. She is also a board member who currently chairs four steering committees focused on organizational strategy and governance.
Amara Oyeka’s journey is a compelling blend of technical excellence, visionary leadership, and unwavering commitment to social impact.
Congratulations on your second anniversary as SSA–IGR Technical to the Governor of Anambra State. Looking back on your career so far, what milestone stands out the most?
My political appointment, I must say, at work level stands out the most for me. I have worked across three sub-nationals, and this third one stands out and keeps me so excited because it happens to be my state of origin. Where my people are directly looking out for the impact of my work in their lives, the economy, and the motivation they get from how I am able to lead. Secondly, permit me to say at a professional level will be the attainment of my Fellowship Status across various professional institutions. It’s been a long time coming with hard work, perseverance, valuable contributions to the profession, consistency of integrity, showing up with a lot of courage, and meaningful impact both at the district and national levels.
What were some of the initial challenges you faced stepping into this role, and how did you navigate them?
Cultural challenges, being a woman, you are almost naturally seen as less important in the scheme of things and, for the most part, looked down on. How I carried myself and the value that I brought to the table all made the difference, and gradually I gained ground.
Lack of professionalism in the public service space was another challenge I faced on arrival, resistance to change, wanting to continue to do things the old way, and seniority in office irrespective of capacity and ability to lead – but I was focused on the goal. Holding the goal of increased revenue on one hand, I used the other hand to consistently engage the staff and key stakeholders until change, flexibility, and result orientation became the norm.
Internally generated revenue is a critical pillar for state development. What key reforms or strategies have you led that have significantly improved Anambra’s revenue performance?
A whole lot, amongst these, is deploying regular training to bring the staff up to speed with tax knowledge and hands-on skills to serve the taxpayers better. Given that a happy taxpayer equals voluntary compliance in most cases, which invariably increases the IGR and drastically reduces the cost of collection.
Stakeholder engagements were strategic and instrumental in the improvements we have seen with an increase in IGR and a more settled business environment. We engaged stakeholders a lot through webinars, institutional collaborations, outreaches, negotiations, persuasion, and cohesion.
Structural changes were introduced, expansion of the jurisdictional coverage, creation of key units and departments, seeking cooperation of the other MDAs, and other social contracts have not just helped to increase IGR but have also drawn the attention of Ndi Anambra in the diaspora.
I oversaw a comprehensive technology infrastructure overhaul to enhance service delivery, improve user experience, and drive a higher compliance rate.
I also developed the AIRS vision and mission, providing a renewed direction and strategic focus for the agency.
How has your background in tax administration across Ogun and Lagos States shaped your approach to revenue generation in Anambra?
My background has taught me a whole lot, amongst which is that you simply do not need to reinvent the wheel. If something isn’t broken, there is no need to fix it. Replicate what works, and make leadership a team effort—because teamwork makes things work. Strategies MUST be both top-down and bottom-up for staff initiative, flexibility, and inclusive tax administration. By all means deploy technology and ensure transparency of operations.
Beyond numbers, what structural or technological innovations have you introduced to make revenue systems more transparent and citizen-friendly?
- Technology has advanced so much now that major tax services are now self-service, ensuring convenience and flexibility.
- Response time to tax inquiries and requests is now within 24 hours
- Approval levels have been well structured to generate more trust amongst taxpayers, such that no one taxpayer is harassed, victimized, or extorted in the hands of mischievous persons.
You’ve been a strong advocate for gender equity and empowerment. How have you integrated those values into your work in government?
Hmmmm, gender parity, gender equality, gender equity, and gender balance. Gender this and that! If not put into real-time practice might as well be best suited for the books. On resumption, I particularly stimulated the board to create more opportunities for the women, and as we speak, the agency has moved from barely just 4-5 women holding key positions to more than 20 in two years. If you ask me, I will say that’s progress—actions speaking louder than words. The Office has celebrated IWD for two years in a row now, utilising that avenue to spotlight the presence, impact, and contributions of women to the office.
Women in the senior management cadres go out to represent the office and sometimes represent the office of the executive chairman at different forums, this is what has never happened before.
Several committees have been set up in the last two years for one event or the other. I have ensured that we have equal representation and charged the women to head subcommittees. Honestly ,the level of sense of belonging has equally impacted the quality of mutual respect and a less toxic environment at work, and everyone is happy for it.
The Obele Women Empowerment Foundation (OWEF) continues to grow. How does your public role complement your advocacy work through the foundation?
My public role actually helps me to live out the dreams of a lot of women and girls. So anyone who knows me and the work that I have done in three states, just without any doubts, wants to be part of what we do at OWEF. The universe has helped me to lead with grace, consistency, focus, and tenacity, so people are not surprised by the advocacy aspect of my life. It’s my sincere hope that women will be free of fear of molestation, physical and financial abuses, and other gender-based marginalizations.
What lessons from the private sector have proven most valuable in your current public service role?
Those lessons are in words, which are that whatever you do, ensure professionalism, consistency of purpose, drive, and have a growth mindset.
As you enter your third year in office, what long-term impact do you hope to leave behind in Anambra’s fiscal governance?
Harmonization of collection greatly increased IGR for the state and assisted in establishing a system that runs on 100% technology.
Finally, how would you define success at this stage of your journey, and what does the next chapter look like for Oyeka Amara Kate?
Fulfillment in what’s accomplished and a clear direction of where I am headed! This is how I choose to define success at this point in time in my career and personal life, given that success isn’t a destination but a continuous work in progress with a sense of contentment along the way.
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