The government maintains that the COVID-19 levy remains essential for addressing the ongoing financial impacts of the pandemic, despite widespread calls from the business community for its repeal.
In the lead-up to the mid-year budget review, business leaders urged the removal of several taxes they consider redundant, including the COVID-19 levy.
Many businesses argue that the tax, initially implemented to mitigate the pandemic’s financial impact, has outlived its usefulness and now imposes a significant burden, making Ghana less attractive to investors.
Despite these concerns, the government has defended retaining the COVID-19 levy. Abena Osei-Asare, Minister of State at the Finance Ministry, addressed the issue before the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament on Wednesday.
She explained that, although the immediate threat of COVID-19 has diminished, the financial impacts are still being felt.
“The threat of COVID-19 is no more, but we still feel the impact. There are many initiatives we undertook during the pandemic that we still need to fund. The effect of COVID-19 is still with us, and the levy is being used to address these ongoing challenges, including paying for vaccines,” she stated.
Osei-Asare emphasized that since Parliament passed the COVID-19 levy, it remains a part of the government’s revenue collection strategy for 2024.
“Once Parliament approved the COVID-19 levy and the projected revenues for 2024, it remains one of the revenue streams we are collecting as a government,” she added.
