The Ghana Printers and Paper Converters Association are calling on the Finance Ministry to implement a tax waiver on the importation of raw materials to help reduce their cost of production.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, William Turkson executive secretary of the Association said despite the endorsement of the VAT Amendment Law, Act 890 by Parliament, the Finance Ministry has failed to grant them the renunciation.
“Cabinet, Parliament and all the stakeholders have ratified the amendment including the Finance Ministry but they are yet to give us that exemption. Since 2015 that the law became effective we are still bearing all the costs”, he said.
Turkson said a list of printing materials that were sent to the Finance Ministry to be granted the waivers by the Education Ministry has been ignored.
In 2015, the government introduced a tax waiver to check the disparity between importers of books and those produced locally.
According to the Ghana Printers and Paper Converters Association imported books came into the country devoid of import duty and VAT, while imported raw materials used by the local printing industry attracted import duty and VAT.
Meanwhile, Turkson has lauded a government policy that sought to purchase locally printed textbooks for the Education Ministry.
Nii Okantah Ankrah Jnr
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