Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, Minister of Finance, has declared revenue mobilisation to be his main priority for the state’s operations.
According to him, this is important due to the large number of expenditures handled by the country’s government structure.
During his tour of the port, he spoke with officers from the Ghana Revenue Authority’s Customs Division and made the declaration.
He consequently directed the tax officials to correct the shortfall of approximately 11 percent in the first quarter revenue objective.
The Minister also held a closed-door discussion with officers and management from the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority to discuss some of his worries regarding the impact of port clearance delays.
This is the Minister of Finance’s first visit to the ports as part of efforts to gather accurate information on the activities of important tax agencies.
According to figures from the Ghana income Authority’s Customs Division, there is an 11% income shortfall in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same period last year.
Dr. Amin Adam declared his determination to make income mobilisation a high priority and instructed the officials to step up their efforts as additional chances for revenue growth exist.
“Revenue Mobilisation is my topmost priority because you can understand that we need money to fund the budget, pay for salaries and carry on other government projects”.
“We may not be able to cover all the things in the budget, so there is the need for some loan support but don’t forget we must repay the loans and therefore we need the revenues to be able to cater for all this. The data shows that you are doing well and I want to commend you for it but also to remind you that there is a shortfall for the first quarter of about 11.3% and therefore I need you to do more to cover up and explore other opportunities that we can use to boost revenue for the state” he said.
The Commissioner General of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Rev. Dr. Amishaddai Owusu Amoah, revealed that, despite the shortage, customs collection at Tema Port has increased by more than 70% throughout the period.
This he attributes to the authorities’ efforts to close some loopholes in the collecting system, particularly in Tema, the country’s most concentrated port.
The Minister and the group also paid a courtesy call on the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority to discuss the high costs of doing business at the port.
Responding to concerns over high port charges, Michael Luguji, Director General of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, stated that the port authority cannot be faulted for the excessive prices.
The Minister also committed to take on the difficulties of different agencies at the ports and find long-term solutions to them.
