Rebuilding Ghana’s Economy: Mahama Must Review The Bogus Ports Tariffs To Attract Investors

Ghana's economy is not only in crisis but has also forced many local and international businesses to close down. In an attempt to close the corruption gap, the previous administration, the NPP, introduced harsh and abnormal port duties. This negatively functioned as a catalyst to demolish the nation’s livelihood and caused the port, which has been one of the main sources of income, to collapse as well. What can Mahama do immediately to restore business confidence and also restore the economy?

I came to Ghana in 2023 to look into the reasons the economy has collapsed and its impact on the populace, a decision to avoid relying on stories about the collapse of the once-thriving economy under Mahama’s administration. I realized that some of the problems that contributed to the economy's collapse and the drop in investments were the government's inability to address widespread corruption, illicit mining, and high tariffs on both imported and exported raw commodities.

Even though one of Akufo Addo's allegations against John Mahama, throughout the campaign trail before becoming president, was that he had imposed excessive taxes on the people. Therefore, he pledged to reduce those taxes once the people grant him the authority to serve them. Akufo Addo failed to fulfill a number of commitments, including the reduction of taxes, protecting the public coffers, and combating illicit mining that has impacted Ghana's drinking water supply and agriculture.

Rather, these taxes were levied by the former president, who is currently on the opposition bench:

1. 3% VAT flat rate
2. 5% increase in VAT
3. Make GETFUND & NHIL levies, taxes
4. 25% increase in corporate tax
5. 2% Special Import Levy
6. 1% COVID levy + 3% VAT = 4%
7. 1% COVID levy on 2.5% NHIL levy
8. 5% Fiscal Stabilisation Levy
9. 5% Financial Sector cleanup (collapse banks) recovery levy
10. 1% E-Levy
11. 20p levy on a litre of petrol/diesel
12. 10p Sanitation (Borla) Levy on a litre of petrol/diesel
13. 18p levy on LPG
14. 2.5% increase in VAT
15. Luxury vehicle tax
16. 50% increase in Call Tax
17. 30% increase in the Energy Sector Levy (ESLA)
18. 11% increase in Special Petroleum Tax
19. 200% increase in BOST margin
20. 40% increase in Price Stabilization & Recovery levy
21. 25% increase in Primary Distribution margin
22. 36% increase in Unified Petroleum Price Fund
23. Road Fund increase
24. 10% withholding tax on betting, lottery, etc
25. 20% increase in tax on betting companies
26. 35% increase in Income Tax
27. 3% & 10% withholding tax on assets & liabilities
28. 25% increase on tax on gifts & gains
29. Profit before tax levy on companies
30. 5% tax on companies declaring losses
31. Tax on motor vehicle benefits
32. 1.75% tax on bank transfers
33. 1.75% tax on remittances (borgo tax)
34. 15% increase in government fees
35. 35% increase in corporate tax on mining companies
36. 22% corporate tax on hotels
37. Excise duty for owning a car, motorbike, etc
38. 1% stamp tax
39. 35% payroll tax (PAYE)
40. Customs & Excise duty on sachet water, bottled water, malt drinks, beers, wines, spirits, cigars, plastic products, textiles, etc.

It happened that during my investigations, I went to the Takoradi port and realized that the ship “Grande Angola” had docked with just three cars. That demonstrates even more how serious the economic catastrophe under the previous administration was. On February 28, 2024, I released my research under the heading "The Ship Grande Angola Anchored At The Port Of Takoradi To Deliver Three Vehicles Due To Ghana's Destroyed Economy" and revealed how:

The importer of the Toyota Corolla paid 43,967.4 GHC (about $3,997.20).) The price increased to $4,305.50 when the vehicle was finally taken out.

My worry about the depressed economy forced me to write a number of articles for Akufo Addo to do something about it. One of these articles revealed Kennedy Agyapong’s allegation that the former president was responsible for the corruption activities occurring at the port. However, since Akufo Addo is a man who never listens and is only interested in gratifying his deepest desires, which is corruption, Ghanaians experienced severe inflation and currency depreciation.

Mahama has a lot of work ahead of him in restoring and reviving the economy. Economic sustainability is not only crucial to Ghana's present issues, but it is also an urgent matter that requires the new president to review and eliminate all needless tariffs that have turned into a roadblock for investors, businessmen, and entrepreneurs seeking to boost the country's economy.