The Executive Secretary of the Importers and Exporters Association of Ghana, Samson Asaki Awingobit, has expressed cautious optimism ahead of the upcoming mid-year budget review, calling on the government to honour its earlier commitments to reduce the tax burden on businesses.
Speaking on the Happy Morning Show with Kwadwo Sefah-Danquah on Happy98.9FM, Mr. Awingobit said the business community is closely watching to see whether the Finance Minister will fulfill promises made including the possible removal of certain levies.
“I’ve heard rumours that the Finance Minister is not going to request more money, meaning no new taxes. But will they fulfil the promise President John Mahama made about abolishing the COVID-19 levy? Or will they maintain it to fund the Mahama Care Foundation? Are they also going to scrap the 2% structured import levy? There are many things we’re looking out for,” he said.
Mr. Awingobit also took aim at inconsistencies in foreign exchange rates used at Ghana’s ports, criticizing the Ghana Shippers’ Authority for allowing discrepancies in how import duties are calculated.
He referenced a recent Bank of Ghana directive, which ambiguously referred to exchange rate “reflections” without providing clarity.
“I have a problem with that. We are in Ghana, and the ports are using GHS 10.3 or 10.4 in calculating GD. Why should anyone use a rate different from the official customs rate? It should be uniform,” he emphasized.
As anticipation builds for the Finance Minister’s presentation, the import and export sector is hopeful that meaningful reforms will be introduced to reduce operational costs, restore business confidence, and drive growth.
