An Economist and lecturer at the University of Ghana, Dr Adu Owusu Sarkodie has expressed satisfaction with the 2025 Budget and Economic policy presented to Parliament by the Minister of Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson on March 11.
The Budget was presented under the theme, “Resetting Ghana for the economy we want.”
Discussing the budget on The KeyPoints on March 15, Dr Sarkodie said, “I am satisfied with the Budget. It is largely a stability budget.”
“He cut expenditure by GHC10b, and did not introduce new taxes. This would help businesses build capital,” he explained.
Touching on the proposal to abolish the electronic transfer levy, Dr Sarkodie opined that, “they should have changed the structure of without removing elevy and betting tax.”
According to Dr. Forson, this move is in line with government’s manifesto promise and efforts to reduce the financial burden on citizens and businesses.
Outlined in Parliament on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, the Minister stated that although government remains committed to increasing non-oil tax revenue by 0.6 percentage points of GDP under the IMF-supported programme, these taxes will be scrapped to improve disposable incomes, support business growth, and enhance tax compliance.
- The 10% withholding tax on lottery winnings (Betting Tax).
- The 1% Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy).
- The Emission Levy on industries and vehicles.
- The VAT on motor vehicle insurance policies.
- The 1.5% withholding tax on unprocessed gold winnings by small-scale miners.
Dr. Forson emphasized that eliminating these taxes will help ease pressure on households and stimulate economic activity.
In respect COVID levy, Dr Sarkodie said it should not be abolished.
“COVID-19 levy should be scrapped. We can rename it and use it for health-related expenditure,” he suggested.
