By: Alberta Asanewa Dwirah and Kimberly Amoako
A Tax Expert, Abeku Gyan-Quansah has emphasized the need for a VAT system in Ghana that is more inclusive, fair, and efficient.
Speaking at a workshop organized by the Transparency International Ghana, he outlined a strategic two-point agenda designed to reshape the country’s tax policy.
His approach aims to spark national dialogue on tax reform while providing actionable solutions to improve the structure and effectiveness of Ghana’s taxation system.
He noted that despite several reforms over the years, the country’s VAT regime continues to grapple with three persistent challenges: inefficiency, inequity, and complex compliance procedures.
While acknowledging VAT as a vital revenue-generating instrument, Mr. Gyan-Quansah stressed the need for it to be designed in a way that ensures fairness and ease of compliance for taxpayers.
Mr. Abeku Gyan-Quansah emphasized the need for Ghana to move beyond an overreliance on Western literature, particularly in economic discourse. He urged academia to make locally driven VAT research more accessible to the public to foster greater scrutiny and engagement.
“My recommendation to academia: I disagree with the blanket statement that the Ghanaian economy is informal. I prefer to say—this is the Ghanaian economy. We can’t keep relying on Western textbooks and labeling everything as informal. Yes, we have challenges, but let’s recognize them for what they are and work toward solutions that reflect our local realities. Publish localized data and research. Share it with the media and let the public read it. What we’re doing now is largely man-made,” he stressed.
Head of Finance and Tax Experts at Transparency International Ghana, Benedict Doe, described the current VAT regime as fragmented and inequitable. He pointed to the cascading tax effect, uneven treatment of businesses, and a heavier burden on marginalized groups who spend a larger portion of their income on essential goods.
“The main point for us is that the current regime has what we call cascading effect where in real terms the rate might be seen for example as maybe 15% but the net rate itself is over 21.9% there about which has implications for businesses and especially also it has a challenge for the marginalizing society because the price of goods and services that attract VAT has been very high over the period,”he said.
To boost public understanding and compliance with tax obligations, a Representative from the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) Kingsley Konadu, announced that this year’s strategic focus is on VAT education. In collaboration with Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), the GRA is rolling out a comprehensive nationwide campaign aimed at demystifying VAT and highlighting its importance to national development.
“As are part of our audit we’ve intensified education because audit is a compliance tool and we say that if you go and have repeat issues then it means we are not educating the taxpayers well. Then apart from that, this year our focus is on sustained education. So, we are rolling out most of education programs and in collaboration with CSOs like yourselves, we hope to do more. This is something we’ve identified, we’ve done so well and we are seeking to correct it,” he added.
After the workshop, participants agreed to draft a set of policy recommendations for submission to the Ministry of Finance.
