In its bid to push the contentious electronic tax through a thick wall of public opposition, the government has promised that if passed, there would be utter transparency in accounting for proceeds from the tax.
Speaking in Koforidua at the first of many town hall meetings scheduled on the E-levy, Communications Minister, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful said the levy would provide the government with increased revenues to sustainably invest in key sectors of the economy and support its flagship programmes in entrepreneurship, youth employment, and fund strategic infrastructure projects.
“Government, in its wisdom and after broad consultation, has introduced a safety net for the poor and vulnerable, whereby transactions less than GHS100 are exempted from the E-Levy to ensure that they are not severely impacted.
“What we are bent on doing as a government is to put the monies that accrue from the levy into good use and make sure at every point in time that Ghanaians know what we are using the monies for,” she said at the event held on Thursday, January 27, 2022.
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The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta also said the E-levy represents a viable way to share the burdens of the state.
“We must find a way to what they call burden-sharing. So, let’s dig deep in ourselves. Nobody likes taxes, but if you look at our debt situation, we need the levy to raise our own money to build the roads we are all looking for, and fund all other key government programmes in entrepreneurship, youth employment, and infrastructure,” he said.
“We want good roads, digital infrastructure, but we need to factor in the devastating effects of Covid-19. Government was doing well. The 1.75% levy is to support employment, which is key and affects all of us. It will also improve productivity and create that modern society we have been yearning for,” he added.
The government has given assurance that the introduction of the Electronic Transactions Levy will provide an opportunity to generate more revenue to sustain its flagship programmes.
The tax regime is intended to help transform infrastructure across the country, including building roads, market amenities, health educational facilities, among others
Additionally, the E-Levy, according to the government, will help to deliver massive numbers of jobs through industrialisation and entrepreneurial programmes.