Tax expert Francis Tima Boye has offered several recommendations to the new administration after the nominee for the Finance Ministry was vetted.
He emphasized the need to prioritize agriculture in the short term as a key strategy to rejuvenate Ghana’s economy.
Mr. Tima Boye suggested an immediate reduction in food prices, particularly maize and rice, to alleviate the financial burden on citizens.
He also called for increased focus on cash crops and local production, highlighting that such efforts could reduce imports, strengthen the cedi, and deliver a swift economic recovery within a few months.
“All the policies that may be coming, they just have to be measured. Maybe we have to look at how do we reset or revive the economy in the very short term. I think that government should focus on bringing down food prices. Look, food constitutes a major expenses for everybody. If I were the government, I will take Agric as the first item to pursue.
I’m not going to look at agric in the long term but the short term: ie. Cash crops, maize. The simple things. Today you go to Accra and Kenkey is sold at 5 cedis because of the price of maize. Poultry farmers are not unable to produce because maize price has gone up. So let’s focus on the things that can give us quick money.
In the next 2, 3 months, let’s go back. And so that at least we cut down the import. Foodstuffs should not be imported.
” And this one, government should go back to the agric extensions. Let’s focus all efforts on agriculture. At the end of the day, you said I’ll be able to bring down food prices, we’ll cut down imports, and our cedi will start strengthening.
Then within 6 months time, we are able to relieve ourselves with certain things, and then things will start picking up. Other than that, there’s a lot of tax ahead of the government.”
He further raised concerns about the effectiveness of tax exemptions, suggesting that cutting them could free up funds to support key government initiatives.
Mr. Tima Boye said, “The only question is that, are we able to cut the exemptions? Every day and every moment you hear parliament granting and approving tax exemptions all in the name of critical projects.”
He further said, “So even though the tax exemptions are supposed to help enrich or transform the economy, at the end of the day, the question that we have to ask ourselves, are those projects really transforming the economy? And is it a key that people are no more going to put in applications and therefore parliament approving? These are questions that we have to do, but let me alone.
If you’re able to make the savings, if you’re able to cut the tax exemptions, we’ll be able to pay for the COVID-19 levy and then the e-levy, try in essence, and we still get money to support the fixed cost budget of the government.”
