Professor Newman Kwadwo Kusi, Executive Director of the Institute of Fiscal Studies
The Executive Director of the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS), Professor Newman Kwadwo Kusi has called on the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to form a stronger association with banks and other institutions in the country to enhance tax collection.
According to him, the current tax collection system used by the GRA officials to manually collect taxes from individuals and businesses create a system that allow people to steal state funds.
In an interview with Citi Business News, Professor Kusi said the GRA must electronically improve on its tax collection system.
He said, “Those GRA officials who go to shops and offices to collect taxes in cash. It creates an opportunity for the system to be abused because they go there and they negotiate with the tax payers to pay a certain amount”.
Prof. Kusi stated that it is important to improve the revenue generated by government if the country wants to develop.
He maintained that the GRA must learn from other jurisdictions and build a system that will fit the country’s tax collection system.
“They need to broaden and open up many more GRA offices. They should also have links with the banks and other institutions so that tax payers can voluntarily go there and pay their taxes online to reduce the corrupt practices”.