The new National Democratic Congress (NDC) government, headed by President John Dramani Mahama, is expected to release its 2025 budget statement, and the Ghana Union of Traders’ Associations (GUTA) is optimistic.
“The assurance given by the government to reduce the cost of doing business in the country by streamlining the tax system and effectively reducing taxes, duties, and levies is a step in the right direction,” GUTA stated in a statement released on Wednesday, February 26, 2025.
“With this approach, we fervently expect the following,” the statement added, signed by Dr. Joseph Obeng, President of GUTA.
Below are GUTA’s eight-point expectations for the 2025 Budget Statement, which Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson is expected to present.
1. All nuisance taxes will be scrapped to considerably prune down the number of numerous taxes that impede the growth of business in the country.
2. The Value Added Tax (VAT) will be restructured to be more simplified, affordable, and uniform.
3. The weekly or biweekly use of the Bank of Ghana Dollar Rate to determine duty payment at the ports should be pegged quarterly or bi-annually for the purpose of clearing goods.
4. We urge the government to introduce unconditional tax amnesty programmes as a stop-gap measure in its quest to broaden the tax base and to ensure non-tax businesses are enrolled into the tax net and also allow businesses with tax irregularities to normalize their tax obligation to optimize government revenue mobilization.
5. Compliance measures including effective education, monitoring, and enforcement would be adapted.
6. The fixed tax system of duty for spare parts as promised in the manifesto is highly expected to be implemented as a pilot scheme for future expansion to all other imported commodities.
7. Above all, the budget should adopt a policy that will ensure stability of the local currency, reduce inflation and interest rates and improve other economic indicators; and
8. Government expenditures should be properly scrutinized and evaluated to avoid waste and misappropriation of public funds. This will ensure value for money expenditure to make tax payments meaningful.
Source: newsthemegh.com