Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has promised to scrap off certain taxes and levies, especially the controversial e-levy tax if elected president in this year’s general elections to alleviate economic conditions of citizens nationwide.
Dr. Bawumia made this announcement this during his first address as an elected flagbearer of the NPP on the 7th February, 2024.
According to him, the initiative will be part of his goals to attain and sustain macroeconomic stability with low inflation, low interest rates, exchange rate stability and low budget deficits.
In his bid to move Ghana into digitalization, he declared that the E-Levy will be abolished.
“To move towards a cashless economy, however, we have to encourage the population to use electronic channels of payment. To accomplish this, there will be no taxes on digital payments under my administration. The e-levy will, therefore, be abolished.”
Dr. Bawumia further noted that a new tax regime will be introduced to enhance compliance, broaden the tax base, and ultimately increase tax revenue.
Taxes such as the Value Added Tax (VAT) on electricity, emissions tax, and betting tax will be identified for removal. This move is expected to alleviate financial strain on individuals and businesses without compromising the fiscal deficit target.
“With cuts in government expenditure, the private sector undertaking expenditure that would normally be done by government and the new tax regime that will enhance compliance, broaden the tax base, and increase tax revenue, the situation we are going to face in 2025 is going to be very different from the situation we faced in 2020 and 2022.”
“With the policy measures implemented thus far, we have outperformed the IMF fiscal deficit target of 5% of GDP by attaining a fiscal deficit of 4.2% in 2023. The new policies that I am proposing to implement in 2025 will give us the fiscal space to eliminate some taxes such as the VAT on electricity, the emissions tax and the betting tax without compromising our deficit target.”
–
Story by: Michelle Lartey | univers.ug.edu.gh
