Ghanaian policy analyst Sitsofe Mensah has criticised the country’s tax exemption framework, arguing that Parliament-approved waivers are directly increasing the financial burden on ordinary consumers.
According to Mensah, while citizens routinely pay multiple consumption taxes such as VAT, the National Health Insurance Levy, GETFund and sanitation levies, large corporations and politically connected investors are often granted exemptions that excuse them from similar obligations.
“You are paying double because someone else is paying zero,” Mensah stated in asocial media post sighted by MyNewsGh.
“From the kayayo to the salaried worker, everyone is taxed, while selected companies are officially excused.”
Mensah described what he termed a “free pass regime,” where investors negotiate tax waivers as a condition for operating in Ghana. He noted that such exemptions are frequently approved by Parliament through voice votes, without detailed public scrutiny.
“Our representatives sign these waivers shielded by a chorus of ‘Yeah,’” he wrote. “These companies import equipment, materials and vehicles worth millions and pay 0.00 Ghana cedis in duty.”
The analyst argued that the fiscal consequences of these exemptions do not eliminate government expenditure but instead redistribute the tax burden. When revenue targets are missed, he said, authorities resort to raising indirect taxes that affect daily consumption.
“When government looks at the deficit, the response is not to reverse exemptions,” Mensah said. “It is to increase VAT, tax mobile money, and tax sachet water.”
