{"id":10731,"date":"2025-04-25T09:53:58","date_gmt":"2025-04-25T09:53:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/?p=10731"},"modified":"2025-04-25T09:53:58","modified_gmt":"2025-04-25T09:53:58","slug":"ghana-is-not-broke-it-is-bleeding-upsas-prof-boadi-calls-for-bold-action-on-tax-leakages","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/?p=10731","title":{"rendered":"Ghana is not broke, it is bleeding- UPSA\u2019s Prof. Boadi calls for bold action on tax leakages"},"content":{"rendered":"

Associate Professor Isaac Boadi, Dean of the Faculty of Accounting and Finance at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), has painted a sobering picture of Ghana\u2019s fiscal landscape, characterising the nation’s financial troubles not as a state of bankruptcy but as the result of massive systemic losses.<\/p>\n

Speaking at a\u00a0Tackling Tax Revenue Leakages in Ghana Forum<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0organised by his faculty, Prof. Boadi argued strongly that the risks are dire if immediate yet bold actions are not taken to tackle tax revenue leakages in Ghana.<\/p>\n

\u201cGhana is not broke. Ghana is bleeding,\u201d he declared, pointing out that \u201cThis is not a political matter. It is not NDC versus NPP. It is Ghana versus corruption.\u201d According to Prof. Boadi, Ghana loses about GH\u20b59 billion annually due to a combination of corruption, tax evasion, and systemic smuggling across various sectors of the economy.<\/p>\n

He stressed that these are not abstract figures but stark indicators of missed opportunities and human suffering.<\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThese figures are not just numbers,\u201d he said. \u201cThey represent classrooms unbuilt, machines and medicines unavailable, and dreams deferred.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sector-by-Sector breakdown of fiscal leakages<\/strong><\/p>\n

Prof. Boadi outlined detailed estimates of losses across several critical sectors, citing credible sources:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • Tax Administration: An estimated GH\u20b53 billion is lost annually to illicit financial flows, largely through high-net-worth individuals and foreign companies exploiting legal loopholes (GRA estimates).<\/li>\n
  • Customs and Trade: The World Bank\u2019s 2023 report highlights import-related corruption costing Ghana over GH\u20b5550 million annually due to under-invoicing, especially in machinery and textiles.<\/li>\n
  • Gold Mining: Losses in 2022 alone were pegged at GH\u20b52 billion, with about 60% of small-scale mining operations evading taxes entirely.<\/li>\n
  • Oil and Gas: An estimated GH\u20b51.5 billion in unaccounted revenues linked to production-sharing agreements, as reported by OPEC.<\/li>\n
  • Cocoa Smuggling: Approximately GH\u20b5150 million lost annually due to cross-border smuggling activities.<\/li>\n
  • Forestry: Illegal logging is estimated to cost GH\u20b5250 million annually in unpaid timber royalties (Forestry Commission).<\/li>\n
  • Public Procurement: The Auditor-General\u2019s reports indicate a loss of over GH\u20b5170 million due to procurement inefficiencies and waste.<\/li>\n
  • Fertiliser Subsidy Programme: Roughly GH\u20b5100 million is lost yearly to fertiliser smuggling under the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.<\/li>\n
  • Port and Harbours: Corruption at Ghana\u2019s ports results in an estimated GH\u20b5250 million loss annually through unpaid import duties.<\/li>\n
  • Informal Sector: With an estimated 80% of the workforce operating informally, Ghana loses an additional GH\u20b515.6 million annually in untapped tax revenue.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Root causes and consequences<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Prof. Boadi identified four root causes fuelling the leakages: weak enforcement, outdated systems, institutionalised collusion, and lack of transparency.<\/p>\n

    He warned that if these are not addressed, Ghana risks deeper social and economic consequences, including deteriorating public services, rising youth unemployment, and a worsening debt crisis.<\/p>\n

    \u201cThe loopholes are being exploited, not just by petty criminals, but by powerful corporations and even officials benefiting from a broken system,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

    The way forward<\/p>\n

    \n
    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

    In his closing remarks, Prof. Boadi urged all stakeholders\u2014government, private sector, and citizens\u2014to rise to the occasion.<\/p>\n

    He outlined four urgent interventions:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Digitalisation of revenue collection systems \u2013 \u201cWe cannot tackle 21st-century challenges with 20th-century tools.\u201d<\/li>\n
    2. Strict sanctions for offenders \u2013 \u201cWithout consequences, corruption becomes profitable.\u201d<\/li>\n
    3. Transparency in public finance \u2013 \u201cEvery Ghanaian must be able to track how every cedi is raised and spent.\u201d<\/li>\n
    4. Formalisation of the informal sector \u2013 \u201cBringing more economic actors into the tax net is essential for inclusive development.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      He warned: \u201cThe data is clear. The victims are real. And the solutions demand courage\u2014from all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Associate Professor Isaac Boadi, Dean of the Faculty of Accounting and Finance at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), has painted a sobering picture of Ghana\u2019s fiscal landscape, characterising the nation’s financial troubles not as a state of bankruptcy but as the result of massive systemic losses. Speaking at a\u00a0Tackling Tax Revenue Leakages in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10732,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[3446,3445],"class_list":["post-10731","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general-news","tag-bold-action-on-tax-leakages","tag-prof-isaac-boadi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10731","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10731"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10731\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10733,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10731\/revisions\/10733"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10732"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10731"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10731"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10731"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}