{"id":1133888,"date":"2022-06-25T09:48:43","date_gmt":"2022-06-25T09:48:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2022\/06\/25\/govt-likely-to-miss-%c2%a24-5bn-e-levy-target-imani-report\/"},"modified":"2022-06-25T09:48:43","modified_gmt":"2022-06-25T09:48:43","slug":"govt-likely-to-miss-%c2%a24-5bn-e-levy-target-imani-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2022\/06\/25\/govt-likely-to-miss-%c2%a24-5bn-e-levy-target-imani-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Gov’t likely to miss \u00a24.5bn e-levy target -IMANI report"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

\n

The government may not meet its target of raising some \u00a24.5 billion from the Electronic Transaction Levy, as about 83% of Ghanaians have reduced their mobile money transactions since the introduction of the levy.<\/p>\n

This is according to a survey report released by IMANI Centre for Policy and Education in collaboration with Deutsche Gesellschaft f\u00fcr Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout 83% or 8 in ten respondents indicated that their volume of transactions has changed since the implementation of the e-levy in May 2022. Of this number, about 47% indicated that they had reduced the number of mobile money transactions by about 51% to 100%. Our findings suggest that the official 24% attrition rate, which the government estimates for the first three to six months following the introduction of the e-levy, is likely to be much higher.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis finding implies that the forecasted GH\u00a24.5 billion (GHS\u00a260 million per month) e-levy revenue target for 2022 is unlikely to be attained given the strong consumer backlash and people finding alternative means of undertaking financial transactions,\u201d portions of the survey said.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The research, which interviewed 1,677 respondents across the country, was aimed at determining the impact of the e-levy on Ghanaians and the coping mechanisms Ghanaians had adopted since its passage in May this year.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Sampled respondents indicated that they had found alternative ways of avoiding the e-levy which included \u201ccarrying physical cash (43.8%), using the mainstream commercial banks (18.1%), and exploiting loopholes in the system by collaborating with mobile money vendors to allow cash out (20.7%).\u201d<\/p>\n

The majority of respondents who are opposed to the levy feel that the government could reduce its expenditure to raise more revenue.<\/p>\n

\u201c32% of those not supporting the e-levy indicated that the government could cut down on wasteful expenditures such as Land Cruiser V8 cars, allowances, conferences, and travel. It is apparent here that
many citizens (72.6%) feel that the government already collects enough taxes and should prudently manage the expenditure side of the equation.\u201d<\/p>\n

The government commenced the implementation of the levy on May 1, 2022, after its initial announcement in the 2022 budget.<\/p>\n

It was reduced from 1.75% to 1.5% following protests from various stakeholders.<\/p>\n

The reduction was considered insufficient by groups that were calling for the levy to be scrapped.<\/p>\n

The government had hoped to rake in about GH\u00a27 billion from the collection of the 1.5% levy on mobile money and other electronic transactions, but the figure was revised downwards to about GH\u00a24 billion recently.<\/p>\n

Click here to read the full IMANI report<\/p>\n