The Excise Duty Amendment Bill 2022, the Growth and Sustainability Levy Bill 2022, the Ghana Revenue Authority Bill 2022, and the Income Tax Amendment Bill 2022 have all been passed by Parliament.
The government’s financial bills presented to Parliament aim to raise approximately 4 billion Ghana Cedis annually as part of domestic revenue mobilisation.
The bills are also critical in assisting the government’s efforts to gain Board approval for the $3 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) Programme staff-level agreement.
Before the votes, Cape Coast South lawmaker George Ricketts-Hagan expressed the Minority caucus’ commitment to oppose the bills as a bold statement to the government that it cannot be reckless with its spending and expect Ghanaians to pay the price.
The government has completed tariff adjustment by the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC), publication of the Auditor-General’s Report on COVID-19 spending, and onboarding of Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund), District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF), and Road Fund on Ghana integrated financial management information system as part of measures to meet the IMF’s criteria for a bailout (GIFMIS).
The international and domestic bond markets are closed for government programme financing, forcing the government to rely on Treasury Bills and concessional loans as its primary sources of funding for the fiscal year 2023.
