Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, the Minister-Designate for Finance, has made a bold pledge to boost Ghana’s revenue without introducing new taxes.
During his vetting process on Monday, January 13, 2025, Dr. Forson emphasized the importance of generating sufficient revenue for the country, highlighting Ghana’s potential for tax revenue mobilization.
According to Dr. Forson, increasing taxes is not the only solution to rake in revenue. Instead, he plans to improve compliance, working closely with the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and the tax policy unit of the Ministry of Finance.
His vision is to increase tax revenue from 13.8% of GDP to 16%-18% in the medium term, making Ghana more competitive with its peers.
“I have studied Ghana’s economy for some time now and without mincing words, Ghana has potential when it comes to tax revenue mobilisation. We don’t necessarily have to increase taxes before you rake in revenue. We have the handles, what we need to do is to improve compliance.”
“I will work with the GRA, the tax policy unit of the Ministry of Finance to ensure that we increase compliance, and ensure that we raise the revenue as much as we can.
“In the medium term, it is my vision when approved to increase the tax revenue from 13.8% of GDP to 16% -18%. By this, we will be able to compare ourselves to our peers. I believe the potentials are out there, but it doesn’t necessarily mean we should increase taxes.”
