The Ghana Plastic Manufacturers Association has accused certain Free Zones Companies of engaging in illegal practices that result in substantial revenue losses for the government.
The association claims that around 12 out of the 166 plastic manufacturing companies in Ghana, which are registered under the Free Zones Enterprise, are importing plastic raw materials duty-free and illegally selling them on the local market.
This practice allows these companies to avoid import duties, leading to significant financial losses for the state.
According to Ebbo Botwe, President of the Plastic Manufacturers Association, this illegal activity has resulted in the government losing approximately GH₵22 million per month, totaling about GH₵264 million annually.
Mr Botwe expressed frustration over the lack of response from the authorities, despite reporting the issue to the Ghana Revenue Authority, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Trade & Industries, and the Ghana Free Zones Authority (GFZA) 18 months ago.
“One sad part of this tax is that in Ghana currently, we have about 166 plastic manufacturing companies and out of this, just about 12 of them are Free Zones Enterprise registered. Some of these 12 registered Free Zone Companies, are importing plastic raw materials and illegally selling them on the open local market, thereby causing the government to lose millions and millions in revenue, by way of avoiding payment of import duties – thus depriving the government of the needed revenue,” Botwe stated.
In response, the Ghana Free Zones Authority (GFZA) announced in a press release that it has begun monitoring and conducting spot checks at production sites. The GFZA is preparing its first report on the impact of these measures, expected by the third quarter of the year.
