Tema-Ghana, July 24, GNA – Mr. Samson Asaki Awingobit, the Executive Secretary of the Importers and Exporters Association Ghana (IEAG), has stated that the mid-year budget review will not present anything good for the business community.
Mr. Awingobit, said this ahead of the mid-year budget reading in Tema, stated emphatically that experiences from past budgets pointed to the fact that it would contain nothing beneficial for them.
The Finance Minister, Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta, is expected to present the mid-year review of the budget statement and economic policy of the government and supplementary estimates for the 2023 financial year to Parliament not later than July 31, as required by law.
The mid-year fiscal policy is in accordance with Article 179 of the 1992 Constitution and the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921).
He said even though their expectation was to see some reduction in the high taxes on importation of goods and the review downward of the Value Added Tax (VAT), as well as the removal of the COVID-19 levy, which has outlived its purpose, they were aware that the government would not do that.
Mr. Awingobit predicted that if nothing was done about the high cost of doing business in Ghana, customers must brace themselves for higher prices as his outfit expects to see more taxes introduced in the mid-year budget review.
He said because of high taxes on imports, cargo throughput has drastically reduced at the country’s port, even though the number of imported items on the market has not decreased.
He explained that some people had resorted to importing their items to neighbouring countries, Togo and Cote D’Ivoire, where they then used the land borders to transport them into Ghana at a cheaper price, forfeiting the purpose of reducing imports to favour local manufacturing.
According to him, if importation through the ports were made expensive and yet the government did not ensure that a favourable environment for local production and manufacturing was put in place, the Ghanaian-made products would still struggle against the imported ones as they would also be expensive on the market for consumers to purchase.
On the issue of reducing customs exemptions as part of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout conditionality, he said even though it was a good idea to increase revenue, as typical of Ghanaians, it would only work on paper but not in reality.
He suggested that to ensure its effectiveness, the IMF must consider policing it by getting a representative at the Ghana Revenue Authority, the Ports and the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS).
