Speaking after the exercise, Dr Forson said the decision to file publicly was deliberate.

“We did so for a simple reason: leadership must be demonstrated, not declared,” he stated.

He commended Ghanaian taxpayers for their consistent contribution to national development, describing their role as central to sustaining the state.

“Paying taxes is a shared civic responsibility. It is the foundation of good governance and a cornerstone of national development,” the Minister said.

Dr Forson stressed that all citizens and institutions are equal before the law and must comply with their tax obligations.

“Compliance is not just a legal obligation. It is a moral responsibility. When each of us pays our fair share, the burden is distributed more equitably and development is accelerated,” he added.

He noted that tax revenues remain critical to financing key sectors of the economy.

“Tax revenue is what funds our schools, hospitals, roads, and security systems,” he said.

The Minister also praised the Ghana Revenue Authority for its efforts, particularly during the Tax and Good Governance Month observed in April.

“I commend the GRA for its work and urge the Authority to intensify public education and continue reforms to simplify processes, reduce compliance costs, and improve transparency,” he said.

Dr Forson reaffirmed the Ministry’s support for the Authority in delivering its mandate.

“The Ministry of Finance stands ready to support the GRA in fully delivering on its mandate,” he noted.

He further encouraged individuals and businesses yet to file their returns to do so promptly, making use of available digital platforms and support systems.

“A strong tax culture strengthens economic stability, deepens accountability, and builds a fairer society,” the Finance Minister added.

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The lost revenue was expected to accrue to the state through taxes, levies, and other regulatory charges on petroleum products imported into the country, but was not properly accounted for.

According to the Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies, the unaccounted volumes represent 2.1 per cent of the country’s total petroleum supply for the year.

The report provides a detailed examination of Ghana’s petroleum product supply and consumption trends from January to December 2025, with a comparative analysis of 2024.

It also highlights national and regional volumes, offering insights critical for market penetration and policy formulation.

Imports and Exports of Petroleum Products

In 2025, imports of petroleum products increased by 36.7 per cent to 8.71 billion litres, up from 6.23 billion litres in 2024. This growth was driven largely by strong commercial and domestic demand.

Domestic refinery output, however, declined from 500,000 metric tonnes to 444,264 metric tonnes, reflecting operational challenges within the refining sector.

Meanwhile, petroleum product exports rose from 524,603 metric tonnes to 658,500 metric tonnes. These exports were largely re-exports of petrol, diesel and LPG to regional markets including Burkina Faso, Mali, Togo and other Sahel countries.

Despite the increase in exports, the report expressed concern about the implications for the exchange rate and national security. This follows findings of high import dependency in the sector.

Imports accounted for over 90 per cent of total petroleum supply in 2025, exposing the country to global oil price volatility, foreign exchange risks and supply chain disruptions.

Uncovering the Loss

According to the Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies, the estimates were derived from a reconciliation analysis of Ghana’s national petroleum stock.

The analysis revealed that 199 million litres of petroleum products were unaccounted for. The report largely attributes this to illegal activities within the sector, despite ongoing automation and regulatory interventions.

It noted that the Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors has, over the years, raised concerns about frequent transfers of refined products from depots to some modular refineries. These transfers, it said, could provide avenues for diversion of products to retail outlets to evade taxes.

The Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies stressed the need for stricter monitoring of petroleum stocks across the entire value chain. It warned that the fiscal impact could be higher than current estimates, underscoring the need for improved verification and accountability mechanisms.

Recommendation by Chamber of Oil Marketing Companies

The Chamber is calling for strict protocols governing the export of petroleum products to neighbouring countries to prevent diversion and tax evasion. This includes developing a comprehensive export manual.

It is also proposing that export permits should be backed by confirmed letters of credit from international banks or verified payments through the Bank of Ghana.

Additionally, the Chamber is urging the National Petroleum Authority and other stakeholders to develop guidelines to regulate transfers of refined products from refinery tanks to commercial storage facilities.

It further recommends that all modular refineries be integrated into the ERDMS and ICUMS systems to track inflows, production and outflows.

The report also proposes stricter monitoring of petroleum stocks, including regular reconciliation reports submitted to the regulator.

It suggests deploying a real-time Automatic Tank Gauging tracking system across all depots and refineries to enhance transparency in product movement.

These findings were contained in the 2025 Petroleum Product Analysis Report, which provides a comprehensive overview of Ghana’s petroleum sector performance and emerging risks.

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Speaking on AM Show on JoyNews, he noted that while the reduction in fuel prices and levies has brought relief, it also raises questions about the country’s ability to meet its revenue expectations.

According to him, although the government had earlier indicated that Ghana could withstand external shocks such as global tensions involving the US, Iran, and Israel, recent developments, including reductions in fuel prices and levies, suggest a shift in approach.

He acknowledged that such interventions help reduce pressure on citizens and demonstrate responsiveness from the administration.

However, Prof. Boadi pointed out that data from the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) indicates that revenue targets for the period have not yet been met, which he described as concerning.

He questioned how the government intends to balance ongoing subsidies and tax relief measures with the need to generate sufficient revenue to meet expenditure demands.

He therefore called on the Ghana Revenue Authority to adopt more effective strategies to boost revenue mobilisation, stressing that sustainable revenue is critical to funding national development.

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The operation, conducted between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m., was led by the Deputy Commissioner, Operations, with support from the Chief Revenue Officer, Preventive (Tema Collection), the Revenue Mobilisation Taskforce of National Security, and enforcement officers from both the Tema Collection and Customs Headquarters.

The 12 trucks are believed to be part of a consignment of 18 articulated trucks that had been electronically gated out of the Customs system as transit goods. They were declared as goods in transit from Akanu, destined for Niger via Kulungugu, but were intercepted while moving without the mandatory Customs human escort—a major violation of transit procedures.

The trucks were loaded with 44,055 packages of edible cooking oil, tomato paste, and spaghetti, with the actual value of taxes involved estimated at over GH¢85 million.

Eleven of the intercepted trucks have been moved to the GPHA Transit Terminal and are under strict Customs supervision, with logistical support from the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority.

One truck developed a mechanical fault during the operation, and its contents are being transferred to another vehicle to secure the goods.

Preliminary checks confirm that all 18 trucks were electronically gated out, yet only 12 have been physically secured. Investigations are ongoing to identify and track the six outstanding trucks.

Deputy Minister for Finance, Thomas Nyarko Ampem, congratulated the enforcement team and emphasized the urgency of tracking the remaining trucks.

“Investigation is ongoing to identify the six outstanding trucks. I’ve asked the Commissioner-General to conclude investigations in one week. We are also tracking the two Customs officers who were involved,” he said.

He stressed the seriousness of the matter, noting the potential revenue loss. “We take these things seriously because the impact on our revenue is substantial,” Mr. Ampem added.

The Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Anthony Kwasi Sarpong, also cautioned businesses and traders to comply fully with Customs laws, warning that offenders will face the full rigours of the law.

“We will apply the law of confiscation. The full arms of the law will be applied,” he stated, noting that the GRA will crack down on any individual or business involved in actions that deny the state much-needed revenue.

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Speaking on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen show, he argued that the NPP government failed to account for the “enormous taxes” it collected, fueling public distrust.

“Ghanaians are not against paying taxes; rather, they are concerned that they do not see how the funds have been used,” he said.

He questioned the use of specific levies, including the COVID-19 levy. “The NPP misused all the enormous taxes collected from us. What did they use the COVID levy for?”

Twum-Barimah added that when the government cannot demonstrate the purpose and impact of tax revenue, citizens naturally resist such policies.

“If they can’t see the relevance of the tax, that’s when they have issues. The E-levy, which Ghanaians complained about yet was still passed, what did they use it for?” he asked.

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The former Minister for Works and Housing argued that although the Finance Minister presented six taxes as being abolished, only two were actually removed.

The six taxes listed as abolished in the 2025 Budget include the 1% E-Levy, the 10% withholding tax on lottery winnings (referred to as the betting tax), the emission levy on industrial vehicles, VAT on motor vehicle insurance policies, the 1.5% withholding tax on unprocessed gold by small-scale miners, and the 1% COVID-19 levy.

However, speaking in an interview on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen, the Ranking Member on the Economy and Development Committee of Parliament accused the government of misleading the public.

“The government claims to have removed 6 taxes, but when you carefully examine the budget appendices, you will realize that only two have actually been removed—the 1% Electronic Transactions Levy (E-Levy) and the 1.5% withholding tax on the mining of unprocessed gold by small-scale miners. For the e-levy, we were raking in GH₵2.2 billion, which means a revenue gap has been created,” he said.

He further argued that taxes like the emission levy and VAT on motor insurance have never been paid by Ghanaians despite their existence.

“If you take a closer look, you will see that the emission levy, VAT on motor vehicle insurance, the betting tax, and the 1% COVID-19 levy have not been scrapped as claimed. The appendices of the budget clearly show this,” he emphasized.

He called on Finance Minister Dr. Ato Forson to be truthful with Ghanaians and clarify the status of the remaining four taxes.

“We cannot allow the government to create a false impression by just speaking English to us,” he said.

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The taxes include the 1% Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy), 10% withholding tax on lottery winnings (Betting Tax), Emission Levy, VAT on motor vehicle insurance policies, and the 1.5% withholding tax on unprocessed gold winnings by small-scale miners.

Dr. Forson made the announcement while presenting the 2025 Budget Statement and Fiscal Policy on Tuesday, March 11, 2025.

He emphasized that the move aligns with the National Democratic Congress (NDC) manifesto promise and aims to reduce the financial burden on citizens and businesses.

The Minister expressed optimism that eliminating these taxes will ease pressure on households and stimulate economic activity.

He added that while the government remains committed to increasing non-oil tax revenue by 0.6 percentage points of GDP under the IMF-supported program, the tax removals are intended to improve disposable incomes, support business growth, and enhance tax compliance.

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His comments come after the government’s announcement to eliminate the betting tax, e-levy, and COVID-19 levy.

While some segments of the public have raised concerns about the revenue losses associated with these tax cuts, Prof Bokpin emphasized the potential for growth.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Midday News on Monday, ahead of the budget presentation scheduled for Tuesday, March 11, the economist estimated that the revenue loss from removing these taxes could exceed GH₵7 billion.

However, he argued that this shortfall could be offset by improving tax efficiency within existing structures, particularly corporate income tax and Value Added Tax (VAT), which he described as inefficient.

“If we can improve VAT efficiency by even 15%, it will generate more than enough revenue to cover these losses,” Prof Bokpin stated. “Let’s not see the removal of these taxes as losses; rather, they should be viewed as incentives for households and businesses to stimulate consumption and promote economic growth.”

He further explained that the revenue impact of removing these taxes is relatively small when compared to the annual tax expenditures incurred through exemptions. He also highlighted the potential to strengthen Ghana’s digital economy, which he believes is crucial for future growth.

Prof Bokpin also stressed the importance of cost savings through the reduction of wasteful expenditure and the adoption of a lean government approach. He urged the government to present clear projections for cost-cutting measures and their impact on fiscal space in 2025 and beyond.

“Expectations are high, but they should be tempered with realism,” he said. “I expect they will continue focusing on fiscal consolidation, with taxation as a key tool. However, I anticipate some revisions to the tax regime, particularly the removal of the e-levy and COVID-19 levy. The betting tax, I believe, requires further assessment due to its behavioral implications.”

Additionally, Prof Bokpin called for greater transparency in assessing Ghana’s fiscal position at the end of 2024. He acknowledged that the country is unlikely to meet its revised target of a 3.5% deficit-to-GDP ratio and a 0.5% primary surplus. He stressed the need for clarity on arrears from state-owned enterprises and other financial commitments.

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According to him, he would be “extremely shocked” if the government took such a step, given the current economic challenges and the financial burden already placed on Ghanaians.

Instead of imposing additional taxes, he believes the government should explore other revenue-generating measures, such as removing some existing taxes and reviewing tax exemptions.

In an interview with JoyNews, Prof. Asuming stated that there are better alternatives to increasing the tax burden on citizens.

He argued that the government could focus on improving tax compliance, broadening the tax base, and cutting wasteful expenditures rather than introducing new levies.

“I will be extremely shocked if the government decides to introduce new taxes. I think they may decide to remove some taxes or change the way some taxes function or are computed. They might also decide to remove some exemptions. But I expect a net removal of taxes or a net reduction in the taxes that are being added,” he stated.

His comments come in the wake of strong opposition from the Minority in Parliament regarding any potential tax increases. The Minority, in an earlier press briefing, warned that they would resist any attempts by the government to introduce new taxes in the upcoming budget.

They recalled that the current administration had made promises to reduce taxes in order to alleviate the economic hardship faced by Ghanaians. According to them, introducing additional taxes at this point would contradict those promises and further worsen the economic struggles of businesses and individuals.

Meanwhile, President John Mahama has justified his incoming administration’s plans to scrap what he describes as “nuisance taxes.”

He argues that the removal of certain taxes will provide relief for businesses and individuals while stimulating economic growth.

In an interview with the Global South World News Network, Mr. Mahama stated that his administration intends to cut unnecessary government expenditure and expand the tax net to compensate for any potential revenue shortfalls. He also stressed the need for a more simplified tax regime to enhance compliance and ease the burden on businesses.

As part of his vision for a more efficient tax system, the President-elect pledged to simplify the Value Added Tax (VAT) structure and streamline its collection using Point of Sale (POS) devices. He believes this digital approach will enhance transparency, reduce revenue leakages, and ultimately improve tax administration in the country.

With the 2025 budget set to be unveiled in the coming months, Ghanaians are keenly watching the government to see whether it will heed these concerns or introduce new revenue measures. The debate over taxation remains a critical issue as Ghana navigates its post-crisis economic recovery.

For now, stakeholders—including economists, businesses, and political figures—continue to push for policies that ease the financial burden on Ghanaians while ensuring sustainable revenue generation.

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Addressing a press conference on Monday, March 3, former Minister for Finance Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam criticized the government’s tax revenue target of GH¢200 billion for the year, arguing that it is unrealistic given the current state of the economy.

Dr. Amin Adam accused the government of hypocrisy, recalling how it previously criticized the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration for overtaxing Ghanaians.

“This is how they intend to tax Ghanaians to collect their target of GH¢200 billion in tax revenues this year. This government accused us of overtaxing the people of Ghana because, by the end of 2024, the NPP administration collected GH¢152.9 billion, which was a 17% tax-to-GDP ratio, up from President Mahama’s 13% in 2016. How do you then turn around to expect to collect GH¢200 billion in a broken economy?” he questioned.

The former Finance Minister further stressed that excessive taxation would stifle economic growth, discourage private sector investment, and worsen the financial struggles of ordinary Ghanaians.

He argued that the government should focus on efficient revenue collection and prudent expenditure management rather than imposing additional tax burdens.

Dr. Amin Adam assured that the Minority would stand with the people of Ghana to resist any attempt to impose new taxes or increase existing ones.

“We, the Mighty Minority, will join the people of Ghana to resist any attempt to smuggle in new taxes or increase existing taxes. We owe it a duty to hold this government accountable and protect the livelihoods of our citizens,” he declared.

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Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express Business Edition on Thursday, February 13, she stated that while tax cuts may be politically appealing, economic reality must take precedence to avoid worsening Ghana’s fragile fiscal situation.

“It’s a difficult period, and I believe that there is nothing wrong if the government, I mean, the finance minister, comes out to say that we promised X, Y, and Z, but this is the reality—it is not possible,” she stated.

According to her, the government still enjoys goodwill from Ghanaians, and instead of hastily scrapping multiple taxes, it should focus on what is economically practical.

Dr. Baffour cautioned that if the economy’s current trajectory shifts into further instability due to revenue shortfalls, the consequences would be disastrous.

“The risk to businesses and Ghanaians as a whole is that if the trajectory that the economy is currently on switches and we enter into another phase of turbulence, it will be quite disastrous for everybody.

“It affects people in terms of standards of living. Fixed-income earners really struggle with high inflation and all that,” she explained.

She acknowledged that keeping some taxes in place might come at a political cost but stressed that economic stability must be the priority.

“Initially, it would mean some political cost, but I think that the government has a lot of room at the moment, and it should not be hasty in taking out all the taxes that it promised to remove if indeed it’s very difficult to make up for it,” she advised.

Referencing past policies, Dr. Baffour noted that the motivation behind removing what were once called “nuisance taxes” was to shift focus from taxation to production.

However, she pointed out that economic growth in Ghana takes time and cannot immediately compensate for lost tax revenue.

“The whole idea of, for example, taking out a lot of taxes, nuisance taxes as we heard some time ago, is the fact that you want to de-emphasize taxation and look at production.

“But the reality is that in our context, growth is quite difficult. It takes quite some time to be able to observe a given substantial level of growth,” she remarked.

Her comments come at a time when the government faces pressure to fulfil campaign promises of tax relief while also grappling with economic recovery efforts following years of high debt, inflation, and revenue shortfalls.

Dr. Baffour’s caution serves as a reminder that while tax relief can provide temporary relief for businesses and individuals, ensuring a stable and sustainable economy should be the ultimate goal.

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The talks come at a decisive moment, with the government planning to scrap key tax measures, including the controversial E-levy, betting tax, and COVID-19 levy.

These levies, introduced by the previous administration to boost domestic revenue, have faced strong opposition from businesses and citizens alike.

With Ghana under an IMF-backed $3 billion Extended Credit Facility (ECF) programme, the fund is expected to assess how these proposed tax cuts align with the country’s fiscal consolidation efforts.

The IMF will seek assurances that the removal of these levies will not jeopardize revenue targets or derail Ghana’s economic recovery.

Beyond revenue concerns, the government faces mounting pressure to resolve Ghana’s energy sector debt, which has become a significant strain on public finances.

The sector’s liabilities, estimated to exceed $2 billion, threaten the stability of power producers and the broader economy. Independent Power Producers (IPPs) have repeatedly warned of potential supply disruptions if the government fails to clear outstanding arrears.

The IMF is expected to push for concrete measures to address structural inefficiencies in the energy sector, improve cost recovery, and establish a sustainable financial framework.

The government is anticipated to present a clear roadmap to the IMF, outlining strategies to offset revenue losses, settle energy sector debts, and maintain macroeconomic stability while implementing these tax reforms.

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According to the Chief Executive Officer of the chamber, Mark Badu-Aboagye, the business community will resist any attempt to impose new taxes after the electronic levy (e-levy) and other taxes are scrapped.

“If the Minister of Finance or the government, for that matter, scraps the betting tax and the e-levy and tries to find another way to introduce a different tax in the budget, we are going to resist it, I can assure you,” he said on PM Express.

He assured that the chamber will collaborate with the government to compel other businesses to pay their taxes.

This move, he explained, will be vital in helping the government rake in more revenue in the future.

“We want to assure him that we will work with them to identify businesses that do not want to pay taxes,” he stressed.

He also emphasized the need to add value to raw materials and reduce the importation of some products.

Mr. Badu-Aboagye urged the government to find innovative ways to support local businesses and industries.

“Let’s work on protecting our local currency in the short to long term. We have the capacity to produce most of the things we import, and that’s where we need to focus,” he said.

“If we make a conscious effort to reduce our imports and produce here, we can save the Ghana cedi. But if we continue to import, then the cedi will continue to depreciate,” he added.

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Paramount to the incoming administration is to rationalise taxes and also reduce waste with the ultimate goal of repositioning Ghana as a prime destination for businesses or investments.

According to Mahama, this move will attract and motivate more investors to the country to help in absorbing the teeming unemployed youths and graduates.

Mr Mahama was speaking during a courtesy visit by the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council(GPCC) on Monday where he emphasised the need for reforms, particularly in the energy sector.

He noted that challenges with the sector if not urgently addressed could derail the progress made under the Debt Exchange and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programmes.

“The priority really is the economy and even though the President was very upbeat about the growth in the third quarter,  from the little briefing I have, the economy is still very weak and there are many areas we need to work on as quickly as possible especially the energy sector.

“It can derail everything we have done with regards to the debt exchange, IMF programme  because the debts continue to pile up there.

“The ECG governance is in a very bad way, and so they are making commercial and technical losses of more than 32%. There’s no utility company that can survive with 32% commercial and technical losses and still continue to be a viable utility. So, as quickly as possible, we need to do reforms in the whole electricity value chain,” he said.

He stressed the importance of making Ghana a competitive destination for foreign investment by creating a more transparent and business-friendly tax regime to foster job creation for the youth.

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He swept back to power after eight years in opposition, running what political analyst Nansata Yakubu described as a “masterclass” in campaigning.

He defeated Vice-President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia by 56.6% of votes to 41.6% to notch up the biggest margin of victory by a candidate in 24 years.

But voter turnout was lower than in the 2020 election, especially in some of the heartlands of Bawumia’s New Patriotic Party (NPP), suggesting people there – disillusioned with its performance in government – stayed at home rather than switch sides.

As Mahama’s supporters celebrated his victory, Belinda Amuzu – a teacher in the northern city of Tamale, a stronghold of Mahama – summed up their hopes.

“I’m expecting the new government to change the economy, so that the hardship will come down. He should also prosecute corrupt officials so that it will be a lesson to others,” she told the BBC.

“The hardship” has become a common phrase in Ghana since the economy hit rock-bottom in 2022, causing a cost-of-living crisis that shredded Bawumia’s reputation as an “economic whizz-kid” – and led to his defeat at the hands of Mahama.

Ghanaian economist Prof Godfred Bokpin told the BBC the challenges facing the next government were huge.

“What Ghana needs right now is credible leadership, lean government and efficiency in public service delivery. Without that, there cannot be a future,” he said.

Mahama has promised to bring down the size of the cabinet from more than 80 to around 60, but Prof Bokpin argued it should be smaller while political analyst Dr Kwame Asah-Asante stressed the need for appointments to be on merit rather than loyalty.

Mahama will be flanked by former Education Minister Prof Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, who is set to become Ghana’s first female vice-president when the new government takes office next month.

Dr Yakubu said her appointment was not one of “tokenism” and she was not someone who could be “manipulated”.

“We have a fantastic first female vice-president in Prof Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang,” she told the BBC Focus on Africa podcast.

Mahama served his first four-year term as president after winning in 2012 but lost his re-election bid in 2016 as Nana Akufo-Addo rose to power with Bawumia as his running-mate.

Dr Yakubu said Mahama contested the 2016 election on his track record in building roads, schools and hospitals but voters rejected him, as their mantra then was: “We don’t eat infrastructure.”

But, she said, during the Covid pandemic voters came to appreciate the infrastructure his government had built, especially hospitals.

This – along with the fact that the economy had plunged into a deep crisis under the current government, forcing it to seek a $3bn (£2.4bn) bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) – led to Mahama being re-elected, Dr Yakubu added.

She told the BBC that Mahama would now be expected to fulfil his campaign promise to create jobs in order to bring down the unemployment rate of almost 15%, and to ease the cost-of-living crisis by scrapping some taxes – or what Ghanaians call “nuisance taxes”.

Mahama has promised to make Ghana a “24-hour economy” through the creation of night-time jobs in both the public and private sectors. He said he would give businesses tax incentives to stay open at night and reduce electricity prices for them.

But his critics have doubts, pointing out that Ghana plunged into its worst electricity crisis during his first term and the power cuts were so bad that Mahama joked at the time that he was known as “Mr Dumsor” – “dum” means “off” and “sor” means “on” in the local Twi language.

He has also promised to abolish several taxes – including the much-criticised electronic levy on mobile transactions and the one on the carbon emissions produced by petrol or diesel-powered vehicles.

Prof Bokpin said he doubted the Mahama administration would be able to fulfil its promises.

“They have not done the cost-benefit analysis. There’s no budgetary space to translate those promises into actuals,” he said.

But Mahama is confident he will prove his critics wrong, saying he intends to renegotiate the conditions of the IMF loan so money is freed up for “social intervention programmes” in a country where 7.3 million people lived in poverty.

In an interview ahead of the election, Mahama told the BBC the IMF wanted “a certain balance” in government finances.

“And so if you’re able to cut expenditure, and you’re able to increase revenue and increase non-tax revenue coming in, you’ll be able to create a balance,” he said.

Dr Asah-Asante said Mahama’s experience as former president held him in good stead to navigate Ghana through choppy waters.

“Of course, he is likely to encounter difficulties, but he has what it takes to turn things around,” the analyst added.

Mahama’s previous stint in government – as vice-president and president – was plagued by corruption allegations, but he has consistently denied any wrongdoing.

In 2020, a UK court found that aviation giant Airbus had used bribes to secure contracts with Ghana for military planes between 2009 and 2015.

An investigation then got underway in Ghana, but the Office of the Special Prosecutor, in a decision announced just months before the election, concluded there was no evidence that Mahama was involved in any corrupt activities himself.

The outgoing government has also been dogged by corruption allegations, including over the purchase of ambulance spare parts at a cost of $34.9m and a controversial national cathedral project in which $58m has been spent without any progress in building it.

Mahama promised his government would tackle corruption, and ensure that officials were prosecuted for wrongdoing.

“We are thinking about special courts,” he told the BBC.

Dr Asah-Asante said Mahama should demand financial accountability from the outgoing government during a handover phase so that “whatever has gone wrong, he will be able to right” as soon as his government takes office next month.

The analyst added that Mahama, who will be inaugurated next month when President Akufo-Addo steps down after his two terms in office, had no choice but to meet the expectations of Ghanaians – or else they would “punish his government the way they have punished the NPP”.

Mahama succinctly acknowledged this in his victory speech, saying: “Expectations of Ghanaians are very high, and we cannot afford to disappoint them.

“Our best days are not behind us; our best days are ahead of us. Forward ever – backwards never.”

According to him, Ghanaians have lost hope in the governance of the country as a result of the continuous mismanagement of the economy by the Akufo-Addo administration, through excess taxes and unreasonable borrowing.

Speaking to Kwadwo Jantuah on Nhyira FM’s KuroYiMuNsem Show, he reiterated the need for a change of government to restore the hopes of Ghanaians.

“Ghanaians are fed up with the gross incompetence and mismanagement of the country. It is time we give power to the NDC to restore that trust and confidence. We are the only party that can correct the mess of this administration and restore the hopes of Ghanaians. This government has borrowed a lot to the tune of Gh¢999 billion with nothing to show. These loans are left for the next government to pay,” Dr. Ato Forson stated.

He attributed the current hardships in the country to the high inflation, high interest rate, and high unemployment rate resulting from the economic mismanagement by the current administration.

He referred to recent data from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) revealing over 25% of Ghanaians who have gone through a day without food.

“Ghana has a high misery index of about 47%, which means that a lot of Ghanaians are living in poverty. In fact, the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) in their current report said over 25% of Ghanaians went a day without food to eat. This is serious and tells you the extent of mismanagement under this government,” said the minority leader.

Dr. Ato Forson revealed that Ghana has the highest VAT in Africa at 21.9% and a reason, businessmen are not complying.

He promised the NDC government will reduce VAT to less than 20% and remove the COVID Levy in their first budget.

“One of the grossly incompetent economic management decisions of this NPP government is revealed by the introduction of sales tax and VAT together. This government has decoupled several taxes like the NHIL and GETFund which has resulted in a cascading effect. The NDC will recoup these taxes to stop the cascading effect. We will remove the COVID Levy and other unreasonable taxes placed on Ghanaians,” he said.

During an appearance on Joy News’ PM Express Business Edition, Badu-Aboagye described the current tax regime as “suffocating,” particularly in light of new taxes introduced under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) program.

“All the excise duties and taxes brought in because of the IMF program are suffocating businesses. Nothing has changed,” Badu-Aboagye lamented.

He added that while the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has become more consultative in its approach, the overall tax structure remains punitive.

“If a presidential candidate promises to remove e-levy, it’s because they know it’s a nuisance tax. It’s not generating the needed revenue, but its negative impact on businesses is huge,” he stated.

Badu-Aboagye criticized the multiplicity and complexity of taxes, pointing out the unique structure of the VAT system in Ghana, which he described as overly convoluted.

“You can’t see this VAT structure anywhere else in the world. It’s a combination of levies that’s confusing to businesses,” he noted.

The CEO further explained that high tax rates lead to tax evasion and avoidance, as businesses find ways to minimise their tax burdens.

“When taxes are high and complex, people will evade or avoid them. Lower taxes would actually lead to more revenue because businesses would find it easier to comply,” he advised.

He called for a complete overhaul of the tax system, arguing that the government’s need for revenue should not come at the expense of businesses.

“We need revenue, but that doesn’t mean we should kill businesses. If we make taxes affordable and simple, compliance will increase, and businesses will thrive,” Badu-Aboagye concluded.

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He said the state of the country’s indebtedness was a national concern and urged Muslims to honour their taxes to raise revenue for the country’s developmental projects.

The Chief Imam said this through Sheikh Aremeyaw Shaibu, the spokesperson for the Chief Imam when the Board of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) paid a courtesy call to the Muslim leader on Thursday.

The visit was to introduce the newly constituted Board members of the Authority to the Chief Imam as part of the activities of its tax education month.

The Chief Imam said in Islam that it was an obligation to engage in charity acts every year to support the less privileged in society.

That, he stressed, was necessary for all Muslims and citizens to adhere to the country’s law to pay their taxes to raise revenue for development projects.

Sheikh Sharubutu said his office was open to partnership with the Authority to engage in outreach programmes to sensitise the public on the importance of tax compliance.

He encouraged all Imams to use their pulpit to educate the Muslim communities on the necessity to pay their taxes to provide infrastructure and other development activities.

He called on the Authority to help ensure accountability from the revenue collected to build the trust and confidence of the public.

The Chief Imam prayed for the leadership of the Authority and the peace of the country ahead of the general elections.

Joe Ghartey, the Board Chairman of GRA, said the country was threatened because “we don’t have money due to economic challenges and low compliance with tax.”

He said the country only received 40 per cent of its revenue from taxation, which was woefully inadequate to undertake any meaningful projects.

Taxes, he stated, were recognised as an important contributor for both developed and developing countries to execute projects.

“Ghanaians must think about what they can do for the country in addition to what they expect from the government from their taxes.

“If we want to reach the promised land, then we have to pay our taxes, he said.

The Board Chairman said the country needed to reduce or avoid borrowing from development partners by paying our taxes.

That, he stressed, would lead to economic and financial independence and as well pursue development projects for the citizens.

Other board members present at the visit include Ms Julie Essiam, Commissioner-General for GRA; Brigadier General Ziblim Ayorrogo, Commissioner of Customs Division of GRA; Ms Pearl Darko, Commissioner in Charge of Support Service Division of GRA; Ms Susan Akomea, and Mrs Araba Bosomtwe.

The team presented an undisclosed amount of money to the Chief Imam and donated assorted items, including bags of rice, cartons of frytol oil, packs of bottled water, and packs of soft drinks.

Source: GNA

The government argues that, the levy is still necessary to address the ongoing financial impacts of the pandemic.

Ahead of the mid-year budget review, the business community had urged the government to eliminate several redundant taxes, including the COVID-19 levy.

Despite these appeals, the government has defended its decision to keep the levy in place.

Abena Osei-Asare, Minister of State at the Finance Ministry, stated during a Public Accounts Committee meeting on Wednesday that while the immediate threat of COVID-19 has lessened, the financial effects of the pandemic continue to be felt.

But Mr. Cudjoe emphasized the burden that taxes are placing on Ghanaians.

He called on the Akufo-Addo administration to urgently abolish the COVID-19 levy and expressed frustration over the lack of infrastructure development despite the government’s extensive tax collection.

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He expressed concern that, Ghana would not see significant progress if the current administration continues to misappropriate funds through questionable procurement deals involving family and friends.

Mr. Ablakwa made these comments in response to Finance Minister Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam’s presentation of the Mid-Year Budget Review in Parliament on Tuesday.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Thursday, Mr. Ablakwa said the budget is a waste of time.

He argued that, the taxes collected are not leading to tangible improvements in the country’s development.

“All these taxes that are being collected—are we, as a country, performing at our optimum? This budget will be meaningless if we collect taxes and use them irresponsibly.

“Look at Malaysia, Singapore, the Asian Tigers we celebrate today—it took them only 30 years to transform. Rwanda, now far ahead of us, needed less than 30 years. Yet here we are, still stagnating 32 years into the 4th Republic,” he stated.

Mr. Ablakwa further criticized the government for imposing numerous taxes without clear benefits to the public.

“The people are being strangled with these burdensome taxes. We need guarantees that these funds will be used effectively,” he said. “It’s high time we amend our standing orders and ensure these ministers are held accountable.”

Play attached audio:

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This was revealed by a Deputy Minister of Finance, Dr. Alex Ampaabeng at the launch of the 8th Ghana Economic Update by the World Bank.

According to him, his outfit and the Ghana Revenue Authority are presently cleaning the tax database to ensure the nation accrue more tax revenue.

He continued that the government will do everything possible to improve the fiscal environment.

According to him, the government will reduce the human interface with respect to tax collection and improve digital collection.

“Going forward, reducing the human interface is key to growing our [Ghana’s] tax revenue. Then Ministry of Finance is working with the GRA to reduce lots of tax infractions.”

Ghana’s tax collection has been low relative to its peers. Between 2017 and 2021, Ghana’s average tax collection was 13.2% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

This was well below the Sub-Saharan Africa average and 8.0 percentage points short of the country’s estimated tax capacity of 21.2% of GDP.

The World Bank report identified areas of inefficiencies within Ghana’s tax policy framework and compliance mechanisms.

Areas the report identified where this could be enhanced include rationalising large tax expenditures, that have contributed to the overall decline of tax revenues. This it said would require striking the balance between reducing revenue losses and the potential distributional and social impacts.

The World Bank said if addressed, these could help ensure macroeconomic stability and generate resources necessary for sustainable long-term growth and poverty reduction efforts.

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Speaking to the media on Sunday, July 7th, the NDC flagbearer outlined the impact of increased taxes on businesses and the general populace, promising reforms if re-elected.

According to Mahama, one of the key factors that made Ghana an attractive destination for business investment was its low taxes and levies.

However, he argued that the current administration’s mismanagement has led to economic decline, prompting the IMF to advise raising taxes to 17 percent, with a target of 24 percent by 2028.

“That is why they wanted to put VAT on electricity,” Mahama stated. “We are the only country where [a pandemic] has come and gone, and we are still paying the Covid levy. Even China, where the virus originated, is not collecting this levy any more, and all this is due to the IMF’s recommendations.” He said.

Additionally, Mahama criticized the government’s stance on tax reduction, urging immediate action rather than promises for future relief.

“They are in government. If they can reduce taxes, they should. They shouldn’t say we should vote for them before they will reduce taxes,” he emphasized.

The former president also highlighted discrepancies in VAT payments, pointing out that traders face different VAT rates, leading to confusion and unfair practices.

During a meeting with the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA), Mahama examined the taxes at the port, discovering about 23 different levies and taxes.

He noted that while there are standardized ECOWAS tariffs, some of these levies and port charges are illegal.

“We will rationalize the port taxes and take out what is not necessary. We have to stabilize the currency,” Mahama asserted.

He criticized the Bank of Ghana’s (BOG) practice of changing rates unpredictably, which contributes to financial instability.

“We have to pay up monies due to the instability of the currency. We should change that for everyone to be okay.”

Nonetheless, Mahama promised to address the high tax burden and bring stability to the economy, ensuring fair and consistent tax practices for all traders and businesses.

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“The taxes advance health equity, prevent disease, save lives, and generate revenue for the general budget. These funds can also support Universal Health Coverage,” she stated.

Madam Darko remarked at the first National Forum on Tobacco Taxation on the theme: “Strengthening the Evidence for Effective Tobacco Taxation for Health and Development in Ghana.”

It was organised by the Vision for Alternative Development – Ghana (VALD-Ghana) in Accra.

The forum was aimed at seeking feasible recommendations through which Ghana’s tobacco taxation could be comprehensively aligned with global standards, particularly those outlined by the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC).

The goal was to address the social, health, environmental and economic impact of tobacco use.

Madam Darko said the passage of the Excise Duty Amendment Act, 2023 (Act 1096), marked a significant milestone in tobacco control in Ghana, transitioning from an ad-valorem tax structure to a mixed tax structure.

“Raising taxes on tobacco products increases their price, making them less affordable and preventing youth initiation,” she noted, adding that; “Article ‘6’ of the WHO FCTC encourages countries to implement price and tax measures, and Ghana is dedicated to this effort,” she said.

She said tackling tobacco use globally was a priority within the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and that controlling the product was crucial for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG Target 3.4.

The target aims to reduce premature mortality from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) by one-third by 2030, while Target ‘3.a’ supports the objective by calling for the strengthening of the implementation of the WHO FCTC.

The Chief Executive stated: “Beyond health, tobacco control reduces poverty and inequalities, strengthens the economy, and promotes sustainable development.”

Madam Darko said the FDA was committed to fully supporting the continuous implementation of the Excise Duty Amendment Act, 2023 (Act 1096) to reduce tobacco use and save lives in Ghana.

The Deputy Commissioner of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Dr Charles Addai, said the Authority was implementing all the excise taxes, which were called “sin taxes” to raise revenue and help reduce the consumption of harmful products.

He said one of the major laws being used by the GRA was the Excise Duty (Amendment) Act 2023 (Act 1108).

“The objective of the Act is to raise revenue, mitigate the harmful effect of excisable products, and conform to ECOWAS protocol; and the major changes in the Act were; an increase in the tax rates, introduced e-cigarettes, and introduced mixed excise tax regime (specific and ad-valorem,” he stated.

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Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, the economist noted that digitising the tax system would improve efficiency in revenue generation and minimise human discretion in tax collection.

While acknowledging that the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and other institutions have digitised some of its tax system, Prof Quartey believes it should be intensified and the tax basket expanded to cover the informal sector.

“We need to raise more revenue domestically, not by imposing higher taxes but by making the existing tax systems more efficient, and we’ve started that with digitization which GRA and the others are doing and I think we need to deepen that.

“And we need to remove the human interface. There is so much discretion when it comes to raising revenue in the country,” he stated.

Mr Quartey’s assertion comes after the Member of the House of Lords in the United Kingdom, Lord Paul Boateng in his keynote speech at a leadership lecture at the UPSA in Accra, said it is time Ghana moves away from reliance on foreign aid.

Lord Boateng indicated that the country will not experience any significant growth since the dependence on external aid hinders progress.

The ISSER Director, who concurs with Lord Boateng, said domestic revenue generation could reduce the country’s dependency on external funding sources.

Another important step to help Ghana achieve financial independence, Prof Quartey believed is for government to reduce its expenditure.

He stressed that even though revenue generation is low, the government often bloated expenditures in its annual budget statements.

Referring to budget statements from 2022 and 2023, he questioned the rationale behind significant expenditure hikes despite revenue challenges.

“We also need to look at our expenditure. I don’t think we are getting value for money for the expenditures, especially for the procurement of goods and services.

“It surprises me that in times of difficulty like this, if you look at the budget statement from 2023, 2022, and even before that we increased expenditure, sometimes, 42%, 30% and you ask yourself, if you are struggling to raise revenue yet your expenditure is still going up, how do you address all the beautiful things you raised in the Ghana Beyond Aid document? We need to go back to the drawing board,” he stated.

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According to him, it is easier to collect taxes from the population when the economy is performing better.

Speaking on JoyNews’ The Pulse, he explained that until measures are put in place to grow the economy, the country will never be able to completely pay off its debt.

“The economy is not growing and ultimately we have to find means to increase our revenue collection and also the government has to look at its own finances but when it comes to revenue generation it is much easier for the government to collect additional revenue when the economy is growing than when it is not.

“In the last three years or so, the economy has not been growing very well, so any attempt to bring new taxes will be a problem,” he told host, Elton Brobbey on June 12.

He also advised the government to consider reducing its size, as it would lessen the tax burden on the taxpayers.

The Government announced a significant milestone in its debt restructuring journey, having reached an agreement on a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with its Official Creditor Committee (OCC).

This is concerning the debt treatment agreed upon in January 2024. The OCC, co-chaired by China and France, played pivotal roles in achieving this milestone.

The MoU formalises the agreement in principle reached with Official Creditors in January and marks a crucial step towards restoring Ghana’s long-term debt sustainability.

“The financial terms of the agreement remain unchanged, providing significant debt service relief during the Fund-supported program period,” stated the Finance Minister, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam.

This relief will allow financial resources to be redirected towards critical areas such as infrastructure, healthcare, and education.

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In an interview on Accra-based Channel One TV, Dr Ampaabeng said there will be no supplementary budget, as communicated by the Finance Minister, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam.

However, he said the government will focus on exploring alternative revenue mobilisation avenues.

The Minister stated that, there are significant opportunities within the current tax framework that can be effectively leveraged for revenue generation.

“There are a lot of conversations ongoing, but one thing I can say on behalf of my Minister [Dr Mohammed Amin Adam] is that there won’t be new taxes in this mid-year budget. But, going forward, we are looking for all avenues to make sure that we enhance revenue.

“I believe there are a lot of opportunities within the tax system for us to rake in revenue. It’s about improving efficiency. It’s about dealing with leakages in the tax system, it’s about engaging the taxpayers to accept responsibilities. There are leakages, but I don’t want to pre-empt anything,” he stated.

The assurance comes amidst concerns of heavy tax burden on businesses and households, urging for the reduction or elimination of some taxes to alleviate financial pressures.

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Rather, the government would ‘use the hard way’ to collect revenue from those who have not been paying the appropriate taxes, as well as those who have been evading taxes in the country.

Dr Amin Adam said this during a press briefing on Saturday, April 13, after Ghana reached a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on the country’s Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement.

The Minister noted that the suspension of the 15 per cent Value Added Tax (VAT) on electricity consumption and GHS100 annual levy on owners of petrol and diesel vehicles, had created a GHS1.8 billion revenue gap.

He indicated that there was an urgent need to increase revenue in line with the implementation of the US$3 billion loan-support programme, but the government was also being careful not to burden the few Ghanaian taxpayers.

As such, the government would be resolute in ensuring the effective implementation of revenue generation mechanisms announced, both in the 2023 and 2024 budgets, but lacked effective implementation.

“Now, we’re determined to go out there and collect the taxes from those who have not been paying and those who have been evading taxes… to generate the desired revenue to fill the gap created as a result of the suspension of the taxes,” he said.

Dr Amin Adam also stated that the government was pursuing reforms within the tax administration to ensure that proper assessments were done, and people made to pay the appropriate taxes to the state in the easiest and fastest ways possible.

The Minister was quick to add that aggressive revenue mobilisation alone, would not be an ideal situation for the country, therefore, there would be a focus on expenditure rationalisation too.

Responding to a question posed to him by the Ghana News Agency on pragmatic expenditure control measures, he stated that the government had been implementing an arrears clearing plan to address outstanding payments.

Additionally, it was on-boarding more agencies to the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) to stop state institutions from spending beyond their budget as well as any unapproved expenditure.

Dr Amin Adam said the government felt the pains that Ghanaians, individuals and businesses alike, had to endure as a result of the implementation of reforms under the ongoing IMF loan-support programme.

While lauding Ghanaians for the sacrifices made since the implementation of the programme in May 2023, he encouraged them to continue to remain patient and sacrificial.

“Some of the reforms that we’re implementing are biting, but I know that we’ll persevere and lead together, and ensure that the benefits of the fiscal consolidation will bring significant relief to the people of Ghana so that we can be counted once again as one of the fastest growing in the world,” he said. 

Ms Julie Essiam, the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), provided further details on the alternative revenue mobilisation efforts to fill in the GHS1.8bn revenue gap created by the suspension of two tax handles.

She said that the Commission had intensified efforts to ensure the effective implementation of compliance measures on foreign income of resident Ghanaians in the country.

In doing so, GRA and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have gone through credible and sustainable structures to ensure it generates the GHS1.8bn revenue that the electricity and waste pollution tax were to provide.

Dr Ernest Addison, Governor, Bank of Ghana (BoG), reiterated the government’s determination to making sure that state institutions worked to change the narrative of election expenditure derailing economic progress in the country.

“In Ghana’s recent history, we have not been able to successfully implement an IMF-supported programme in an election year without derailment,” the Central Bank Governor said. 

“The Government and the Central Bank are committed to changing that narrative…and we will remain committed to ensure that programme implementation stays firm,” he added.

Meanwhile, it is expected that when the IMF Board meets in June this year, it would approve Ghana’s GHS$360m third tranche, following a staff-level agreement reached between Ghanaian authorities and the IMF Mission team.

That would bring the total disbursement for Ghana’s ECF arrangement backed by the country’s Post-COVID-19 Programme for Economic Growth (PC-PEG) to US$1.56 bn.

Already, the country had received the sum of US$1.2 bn from the first two tranches since the implementation of the US$3bn-three-year IMF loan-support programme.

The programme is aimed at restoring macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability, build resilience, and lay the foundation for stronger and more inclusive growth.

This follows Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia‘s pledge to among other things, abolish the electronic transactions levy, emissions tax, the proposed 15 per cent Value Added Tax on electricity, and other taxes introduced by the incumbent government.

According to Dr Forson, if Dr Bawumia is honest about his intentions when the private member’s bill is introduced on the floor of Parliament, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) MPs will support it.

Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on February 13, he argued that the majority’s position on the matter will confirm whether or not the NPP flagbearer was honest.

“All the taxes that we have opposed, we will make an attempt to get the government to remove them.

“In fact, now that the Vice President himself has come to confirm to us that they don’t want the taxes, we have already said on the floor, he is only copying what the NDC is saying.

“I have said on the floor and the hansard will bear me out that the next NDC government will remove this [taxes]. I have said this. I am the first person,” he told host, Evans Mensah.

When asked why he would not wait for the next NDC to remove these taxes, the Minority leader said “Why should we wait? Ghanaians are struggling.

“The only reason why this tax is still effective and your good self and my good self and the ordinary Ghanaian is paying this tax is that the NDC is not in office.”

He stressed that the NDC was more concerned about the welfare of the populace than the governing party, therefore, in their first few months in office, they would scrap all the taxes which have overburdened the population.

“In fact, if the NDC is in office and if Ghanaians vote for us, by December, our first budget before Easter, we will remove all these taxes. But now we are not in office. This is a government that is in office; they have said that they will remove it in 2025. To show good faith to the people of Ghana, we urge them to come and remove it.”

“We have to compel them and that is what it is. We have to compel them to remove these taxes because it is not easy,” he added.

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He said government considered the upcoming elections and the need for funds to implement projects and opted to raise revenue through tax imposition.

“And so yes. 15% of the tax imposition on electricity consumption would give us 0.2% of GDP. That is the direction they want to take. You know this is an election year. We would need cash. We would need money. There are instances where we can use these funds to directly influence individuals.

“There are instances where some strategic project would have to be executed. We need money to do that. Let us take the money and go and do those projects.

“If we can commission projects in an election year, we will be able to dish out money for our campaign activities, and so going in for the 0.2 % GDP, we should get that from taxation, hence the imposition of the 15% tax on electricity.”

Speaking on JoyNews on February 7, the Public Accounts Committee member disclosed that the government had the option to decrease expenditure, which could have included reducing the size of the government.

He noted that if the president had reduced the number of ministers, it might have hurt the party.

Mr. Sulemana pointed out that many government appointees who are not actively contributing might not support the party if they were dismissed.

“You think the secrets that they know about the government, they would not expose them? So it is between reducing the size of government, reducing your expenditure and imposing taxes on the Ghanaian, and they have decided that why not let us impose taxes on them, and that is where we are. Now that they have imposed the tax, Ghanaians are crying.

“Today, if they are saying they would come back to Parliament and read a new budget, and in the budget, they would reduce expenditure, the World Bank is fine with that. Anything aside from this, you would have to implement the 15% imposition of tax.”

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Mr. Badu-Aboagye said members of the chamber are left with no option than to lay off workers due to the economic challenges affecting their operations.

Speaking on PM Express, he said employers are not happy with the current state of the economy.

He, however, called for the intervention of government to aid in reducing the cost of operations to ensure sustainability.

“One of our workers had over 125 workers somewhere last year, but now he has abandoned some of the work he was doing. He will eventually shutdown some of his plants because it is difficult to meet up with some of the demands from these employees”, he narrated.

He further said the industry sector, in particular, has recorded negative growth consistently throughout 2023, revealing the overall challenges faced by businesses.

“As of the third quarter of 2023, the growth of GDP was 2%. And when you look at the details you will realise that most of the sectors are not doing well. Consistently from the beginning of the year to now. The industry sector has recorded negative growth. It’s only in the last quarter that the manufacturing sector recorded a 2% growth. So it shows clearly that businesses are not doing well”.

“If they are doing well, they produce a lot and by multiplying it by the market value, you will see that your GDP [Gross Domestic Product] will go higher. So it’s not far-fetched, if the government wants to know the state of businesses in Ghana, just check the GDP.” he said.

Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express, Mr Badu-Aboagye questioned the sustainability of business profitability in the face of increasing costs and taxes.

He argued that taxes have become an albatross on business growth.

“I think that our taxes have become more of a punishment to businesses than to support them. This is because we cannot pay, but they’re expecting you to pay.

“They are beating us but they are telling us to keep quiet,” he said on Thursday.

The CEO underscored the importance of not just introducing new taxes but also focusing on their efficiency and impact on businesses.

He emphasized the detrimental effect of the continuous introduction of new taxes, expressing the belief that these measures are ultimately hindering rather than promoting business growth.

“Businesses are suffering. Businesses cannot pay this tax. Businesses are just not making enough revenue to be able to pay this tax,” he told host George Wiafe.

Drawing attention to the economic indicators, he cited the GDP as a key measure of the state of businesses in Ghana.

Mr Badu-Aboagye highlighted the concerning trend in the growth of GDP, indicating that most sectors are not performing well.

According to him, the industry sector, in particular, has recorded negative growth consistently throughout 2023, revealing the overall challenges faced by businesses.

“As of the third quarter of 2023, the growth of GDP was 2%. And when you look at the details you will realise that most of the sectors are not doing well. Consistently from the beginning of the year to now. The industry sector has recorded negative growth. It’s only in the last quarter that the manufacturing sector recorded a 2% growth. So it shows clearly that businesses are not doing well.

“If they are doing well, they produce a lot and by multiplying it by the market value, you will see that your GDP will go higher. So it’s not far-fetched, if the government wants to know the state of businesses in Ghana, just check the GDP.”

Speaking on Newsfile on JoyNews, he explained that although no one is against raising more money to support the economy, Ghanaians are feeling the pinch of paying new taxes introduced unpredictably.

“This is state-sponsored robbery. This is robbery that leaves the citizens financially repressed. It should not be accepted. I think in Ghana, we have allowed too many wrongs in this country,” he noted.

Prof Bokpin said that it is important to explore optimal ways of raising revenue without compromising the ability of households to meet their needs and the private sector to remain competitive.

“Nobody can tell us that the only way out is to impose more taxes and taxes, as we have done. The more we impose taxes, the real effect in scaling up or our tax revenue to GDP ratio is not seen,” he told the host, Samson Lardy Anyenini.

“This is a small open economy. We have more than 27 different tax handles. That is not the only thing. If since 2020 the taxes we have imposed, if you estimate the compliance cost to the taxpayer, it’s huge, configuring systems virtually every six months, there is no predictability,” Prof Bokpin said.

The Economics lecturer said that the government should work harder to generate revenue for the people it aims to build the economy for.

“Are we not building it (economy) for Ghanaians? Are we not building it for Ghanaian private-sector businesses? What happens if by the time we achieve macroeconomic stability, half of Ghanaians have gone into poverty and have no way of reversing that? What economy is that? At the centre of it all are people and businesses.”

“The banking sector spends millions of dollars to configure their system to allow the charging of E levy. Check the manufacturing sector, they pay so much and disruption to their production line just to fix their tax stamp or something. Virtually every six months, there’s some level of disruption to planning, and to the production process. My considered view is that what Ghana is doing is not taxation,” he added.

In January 2024, the government requested the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to liaise with the two power distribution companies to transfer Value Added Tax (VAT) generated from consumers who have exceeded their lifeline power consumption.

In a press release, Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta directed that the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCO) work with GRA to implement VAT on households that have consumed power above the maximum consumption level specified for block charges for the lifeline unit effective January 1, 2024.

On January 19, the Secretary-General of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Dr Yaw Baah, said that labour cannot accept the imposition of the 15% Value Added Tax on lifeline electricity consumers as it is inimical to workers’ welfare.

He wondered how the government thought it wise to further yoke the suffering worker, despite all the hardship, with the new tax.

“This country called Ghana, and all the resources we have, now the government doesn’t see anywhere else to tax; they are taxing our electricity also. Tomorrow they will tax our water, and we are not going to sit down for that to continue. That’s why I’m saying you are going to have a baptism of fire; we need to fight it until this thing is cancelled,” Dr Baah said.

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This amount is broken down into Corporate Tax of GHS 514.57 million; Minerals Royalties of GHS 197.06 million: GHS 78.23 as Pay As You Earn (PAYE); GHS 42.31 as Withholding Tax; and GHS 11.55 million as Forestry Levy.

“Fulfilling our obligations in terms of statutory payments, and being transparent about what we pay, are in line with our commitment to regulatory compliance and good corporate governance,” said David Thornton, Regional Senior Vice President, Newmont Africa Operations.

Newmont Africa’s operations in Ghana have a strong tax compliance history and received multiple taxpayer recognitions from the Ghana Revenue Authority.

“It is important, especially in these challenging times, for companies to honour their obligations to the state, as well to their various stakeholders, through direct payment of their taxes and investment in social programmes,” he added.

Apart from the taxes, royalties, and levies that go directly to the government towards the growth and stabilization of the economy, Newmont Africa also focuses on stimulating economic development in the local communities that host the mining operations, through a range of programs and projects that deliver measurable outcomes.

Acknowledging the key role that road infrastructure plays, particularly in farming communities, Newmont Africa’s operations in Akyem and Ahafo have both funded critical road infrastructure, working through the Ministry of Roads and Highways.

The mines’ investment in skills acquisition and sustainable livelihood programmes also ensure that local community residents are equipped with employable skills that are needed in the extractive and construction industries.

The Auditor-General’s report on the audit of ministries, departments and agencies noted the discrepancy from the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS).

Twenty-eight Oil OMCs failed to settle their rescheduled debts of ¢402,049,571.70.

This is contrary to Section 47 of the Revenue Administration Act, 2016 (Act 915).

The law provides that a taxpayer may apply in writing to the Commissioner-General for an extension of time to pay tax under the tax law.

“A taxpayer may re-apply to the Commissioner–General before the end of the extension period but an extension of time to pay tax shall not exceed 12 months in aggregate.

“Where an extension is granted, and the taxpayer is permitted to pay by instalments and the taxpayer defaults in paying any of the instalments, the whole balance of the tax outstanding becomes payable immediately.”

The Auditor-General in the report recommended that the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority should use legal means to recover the outstanding amount of ¢402,049,571.70 from the OMCs involved.

Recover amount

It also directed the Commissioner, GRA Customs Division, to fully recover the amount of ¢249,800,802.28 from the 17 OMCs without further delay.

On domestic tax revenue, the report revealed that 6,856 companies, business entities and individuals owed ¢111,652,263.00 in corporate and individual income taxes from 2019 to 2021.

Also, Pay As You Earn (PAYE) totalling ¢32,071,516.00, deducted on behalf of 3,121 employees, including 346 directors was not remitted to the Commissioner-General for 2019, 2020 and 2021 years of assessment, the report said.

“Our audit showed that 811 companies who filed their tax returns for 2019, 2020 and 2021 years of assessment failed to withhold taxes on goods and services procured amounting to ¢43,471,511.50,” it added.

Retrieval of monies

Media reports, however, indicate that the Revenue Assurance, Compliance and Enforcement (RACE) of the Ministry of Finance has retrieved ¢24.2 million as tax under recovery from some OMCs and a commercial bank.

This follows the validation of tax payments for the lifting of refined petroleum products.

According to the Ministry, the RACE team concluded the first phase of engagements with 99 out of 117 OMCs to validate tax payments for the lifting of refined petroleum products.

The engagements involved GRA, the National Petroleum Authority, the Association of Oil Marketing Companies and some commercial banks.

Under the RACE initiative, the government has established a tax liability of ¢62 million against a commercial bank out of which ¢14.3 million has been recovered. Furthermore, about ¢9.9 million has been recovered from some OMCs.

According to the rapper, he is not against the government taxing businesses, adding that, his only concern is if the government will go ahead to utilize the monies collected for its purpose.

Speaking in an interview with Adom TV’s Maame Boat at the launch of his album which took place at Barbados Lounge, Kwesi Arthur said it’s about time that the government sits up with its transparency and accountability models.

When Kwesi Arthur was queried on government thinking about taxing YouTube, blogs among others, he said: Eii… that too. Eii Ghana… I feel like the country needs taxes to grow. We should know what they use it for. If you would let us know what you do with it then that’s it. Now we are on the internet… they should break it down so it becomes transparent.

As long as the monies will not go into the pockets of some people. We have paid taxes for so long but things are still as how they are. I don’t have a problem with government taking taxes, he said.

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Speaking at the 2021 Bar Conference in Bolgatanga, Mr Dame said the vigilance of lawyers through the years, which has ensured the protection of human rights and the welfare of society, is similarly required to guarantee the economic development of the country.

In order to achieve that, he advised lawyers to desist from the practice of helping their clients to avoid or evade taxes and also take up the personal responsibility of leading by example.

“Many lawyers are caught in the phenomenon of tax evasion as they unjustifiably avoid being caught in the tax net, either by understating their profits or concealing their true income.

“The luxurious lifestyles of lawyers, riding in the most plush of vehicles and acquiring top-end property, are hardly commensurate with the amount of taxes they pay. I entreat lawyers to honour the fullest of their tax obligations as, not doing so, is not only criminal, but borders on a gross violation of professional rules,” he said.

The Attorney General opined that lawyers, who aid their clients to evade taxes, are being disloyal to the state and have neglected their professional ethos of being watchdogs of the state.

He suggested to the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) to make the fulfilment of annual tax obligations a requirement for lawyers to be in good standing.

President Nana Akufo-Addo, himself a lawyer, who was the Guest of Honour at the Bar Conference, described the phenomenon of lawyers not paying taxes as embarrassing for the profession.

He explained that “lawyers use their knowledge of the law to deliberately avoid paying taxes.”

He, however, said by tackling the issue of taxation, the Bar is demonstrating courage. He equated this year’s conference to previous editions that confronted major political issues in the history of Ghana.

The 2021 Bar Conference, the highlight of activities of the Bar every year, is being held under the theme, ‘Ensuring an increase in revenue mobilisation through taxation for the purpose of accelerated national development: The role of the Lawyer.’

Speakers at the opening of the conference included Chief Justice Anin Yeboah and the outgoing President of the Ghana Bar Association, Anthony Forson Esq.

According to him, the 33,000, which include engineers, lawyers and accountants, do not pay taxes but want everything in the country to be fixed.

He said: “You have to convince the 33,000 engineers, lawyers, accountants and other professionals who are not paying tax according to the Ghana Revenue Authority, yet, are asking for everything to be fixed that they have to pay their due if we are to rake in the 10% of our GDP and lower our borrowing and you need the help of the marketing-communications professional and the media to succeed at that.”

Mr Oppong Nkrumah made this known during his keynote address at the Graphic Business/Stanbic Bank Breakfast Meeting today (August 24, 2021) in Accra.

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He was speaking on the theme: ‘Media and Marketing Communication Post COVID-19: a Catalyst for Africa’s Socio-Economic Resurgence.’

Tax evasion

Earlier on August 9, 2021, the Finance Minister, in a radio interview, disclosed that a GRA study had revealed that some 60,000 business people were evading taxes in Ghana.

“We went through the exercise to sort of titrate to see what we’ve got, and we got about 60,000 business people who were not paying taxes…some 5,000 or 6,000 lawyers are not. Some doctors [are not paying income tax]…so you begin to see all of these professionals, all of us on social media ranting against the government and [realise] that most of these people are not even paying taxes,” Ken Ofori-Atta said in an interview with Accra-based Asaase Radio.

The 2021 survey conducted by the research network says though eight out of 10 citizens (79%) agree that authorities have the right to demand taxes, less than two out of 10 (15%) are of a contrary view.

In March, Parliament in its 2021 budget statement introduced new taxes, attributing most of them to the unforeseen developments that characterised the advent of the novel coronavirus.

These include a 1% Covid-19 levy added to the VAT and a 1% addition to the National Health Insurance Levy.

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These increments were vehemently resisted by a section of the public including the Minority in Parliament who described the imposition as regressive and will impose further hardship on citizens.

Against this backdrop, the report insists that Ghanaians endorse taxation and are even willing to pay higher taxes to support the country’s development but find the avenues for utilisation problematic.

The study found that “large majority

say it’s difficult to find out what taxes they’re supposed to pay (61%) and how the government uses tax revenues.”

“Only four in 10 citizens (39%) say they trust the tax authorities ‘somewhat’ or ‘a lot.’ More than eight in 10 (84%) think at least ‘some’ tax officials are corrupt, including one-third (34%) who think that ‘most’ or ‘all’ are involved in graft,” the study further revealed.

The new policy will begin from as early as June 2021, the Google-owned company said in an email to creators.

YouTube has also asked creators to submit their tax information in AdSense “to determine the correct amount of taxes to deduct.”

The changes apply to all creators outside of the US, including the ones in India. However, there won’t be any similar tax deduction for creators living in the US.

In a support page, YouTube said that its parent company Google has the responsibility under Chapter 3 of the US Internal Revenue Code to collect tax information, withhold taxes, and report to the Internal Revenue Service when a creator earned royalty revenue from viewers in the US.

This has resulted in the implementation of the new tax requirements for YouTube earnings.

“If any tax deductions apply, Google will withhold taxes on YouTube earnings from viewers in the US from ad views, YouTube Premium, Super Chat, Super Stickers, and Channel Memberships,” the company said in its support page.

YouTube has informed creators about the update and has asked them to provide their tax information in their AdSense account as early as possible.

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If a creator isn’t able to provide the information by May 31, the company said that it might need to deduct up to 24 percent of their total earnings worldwide.

However, if a creator has provided their tax information, there will be a withholding between 0–30 percent on the earnings they generate from viewers in the US.

The withholding rates notably depend on whether the country of the creator has a tax treaty relationship with the US. This means that there will be variation in the deduction of taxes for creators in different countries.

Specifically for India, the withholding rate is set at 15 percent of the total earnings a creator gets from viewers in the US.

YouTube has created a video to explain the change and help creators provide their tax information. The company has also tweeted the new rules through its local social media channels.

Many creators are criticising YouTube for the tax deductions planned — given the fact that the company already takes a cut of revenue from the ads it serves on the platform.

The change is also believed to largely affect small creators who don’t have millions of subscribers to attract sponsors for native advertisements.

When reached out to for a response on the criticism from creators, a YouTube spokesperson told Gadgets 360 that the changes are aligned with the US tax law.

“Under US tax law, Google is required to withhold taxes when non-US creators earn income from viewers in the US. We are asking creators to submit relevant tax information to determine whether any US withholding taxes apply and where applicable, we will withhold US taxes from creators’ earnings beginning later this year,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

YouTube offers monetisation to creators under the YouTube Partner Programme that requires creator accounts to have at least 4,000 public watch hours in the last 12 months and over 1,000 subscribers.

However, last year, the company updated its terms of service to make way for running ads on videos created by small creators who aren’t a part of the YouTube Partner Programme and aren’t generating any direct earnings from the platform.

That move also invoked some anger among creators who weren’t generating any Google AdSense revenues.

The initiative, to be rolled out after authorization to designated banks, is meant to relieve tax payers of the burden of physically showing up at tax offices to fulfill their commitment.

Acting Commissioner-General, Rev Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah, reveals this and other strategies will enhance achievement of the authority’s revised 2020 target of 55.02 billion Ghana Cedis.

“GRA will authorize banks to accept the payment of taxes. This will allow tax officials to carry out tax duties and mobilize revenue which is our core mandate

This will also bring convenience into tax payment as taxpayers will not have to physically come to GRA offices to pay taxes.

In the same vein, the Authority will introduce the payment of Vehicle Income Tax and Tax Stamp payment through mobile money.”

Board and management of GRA are meeting with industry players and other stakeholders at the 2020 management retreat in Kumasi.

Under the theme, “Roadmap to Excellence”, deliberation will focus on strategies for achieving revenue targets for the year.

GRA has meanwhile challenged itself to generate 55 billion ghana cedis in tax revenue from the initiative 47 billion cedis at the end of 2020.

Reverend Owusu-Amoah, explains the figure is a growth of 25.2 percent over the previous year’s collection.

Meanwhile, it collected a total of 43.9 billion cedis against a revised target of 42 billion cedis by the close of 2019.

This represents a revenue growth of 16.6 per cent and exceeding the revised target by 4.4 percent.

To achieve this year’s ambitious target, Rev Owusu-Amoah says the authority targets to increase its debt collection ratio from 12 percent to 25 percent.

““Massive debt collection exercises which were intensified in December 2019 will continue. Defaulting taxpayers, will be dealt with as the law allows us to do, as we plan to double our debt collection ratio from the current average of 12 percent to 25 percent by 2020.

Efforts will also be intensified to bring into the tax net taxpayers outside the tax net while also paying critical attention to improved customer service”.

The state collection agency also hints of improvement in the informant reward scheme under which people are compensated for providing information leading to recovery of taxes.

Board Chairman, Professor Stephen Addai, says the authority will provide relevant tools, including procurement of 3,000 laptops, to enhance staff operations.

“So we want to expedite getting you the tools. The budget has been approved and so we are going to buy 3000 laptops this year.

We want everybody should have laptop and to work not to decorate your desk but to be an instrument for you to work with and they all will be linked to the server and whatever you do on it we shall see it.”

Professor Addai continues that, “…so we won’t wait till the end of the month I am calculating whether we have met the target or not but we will get to know in real time”.

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Meanwhile, the authority says it will continue to undertake a strong digitization drive as part of its transformation agenda.

In the course of the year, it will automate the payment of Value Added Tax (VAT) which will involve linking teller systems of VAT registered businesses to a centralized database to ensure that VAT collected is credited to the authority in real time.

Also all the modules in the second phase of the integrated Tax Application and Processing System (ITaPS) will be rolled out starting from March 2020

This system will automate filling of returns, issuance of tax clearance certificate, withholding tax credit certificate and tax credit certificate among others

Meanwhile, Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah, asked the GRA to make payment of taxes easier.