The Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI) has advocated for a further reduction of corporate taxes from 25% to cushion the plight of SMEs in the country in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The chamber also wants Ghana to introduce the tier module in its corporate taxing regime which allows for local companies to file their taxes in different percentages depending on their operational size and production capacity.
The CEO of the chamber, Mark Badu Aboagye made these known in an interview with Asaase news on the sidelines of a tax mobilisation workshop by the Ghana anti-corruption coalition.
He said: “We have been advocating for a reduction in the corporate tax. In fact, it used to be 30%, we advocated and it was reduced to 25%. We are still saying that the 25% is on the higher side, generating revenue from the tax is usually not about the higher tax rate, it is about how broad the tax net is and how each and everyone is paying or contributing in their own small way.
“So, we continue to ask for a reduction in the corporate tax and also, we are asking for a tier system of payment of taxes. If a big corporate international company is paying 25% and you also expect SME to pay 25%, I don’t think there is fairness in that.”
Meanwhile, the executive director of a financial think tank “Revenue mobilisation Africa,” Geoffrey Ocansey said the government must conduct a forensic analysis of the performance of companies who benefited from its COVID-19 support programmes for SMEs.
“The government must meet with these SMEs to offer them some rebate or tax holidays just to ensure that those that are still going through rough times can come out. Mind you, some of these SMEs also made some good money around the period, especially, those who were offering internet services. So, there is the need for the government to negotiate with these and see how they can also support such a system,” he said.
Philip Asiawo
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