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Finance Minister-designate Ken Ofori-Atta described the 2021 budget statement as a rallying cry for Ghanaians to join forces with the government to save the economy from the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said the pandemic had taken serious havoc on lives and livelihoods, so only a united front, ready to share the burden and sacrifice a little for the nation, would help reverse the consequences, mitigate impact and get the economy back on track.
Speaking yesterday for the first time since traveling to the United States of America (USA) for treatment of post-COVID-19 complications in mid-February, Mr Ofori-Atta said that the budget presented on March 12 would pose the needs. foundation to rebuild from the devastating effects of COVID-19.
He contributed to a virtual post-budget review mission organized by the audit and accounting firm, Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC), to provide an overview and outlook on the 2021 budget which was presented by the Minister of Business parliamentarians and majority leader, Mr. Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu.
Under the theme: “ Consolidation, Completion and Continuity ”, the 2021 budget was the country’s first revenue and expenditure estimate to be presented by a non-financial minister and it focused on roads, industrialization and digitization.
“Really, I think it’s a founding budget; it’s a rallying cry for all of us, as a country, to ask, “What will we all do to make sure COVID-19 doesn’t sink us?” he said.
Thematic areas
Mr Ofori-Atta said the budget was based on “an incredible period of renewal for us as Ghanaians to bring our economy back to where it was or where it should go”.
To this end, he said, the budget aimed to bring the debt stock to sustainable levels, reduce the deficit through improved spending and increased revenue collection, and stimulate growth. .
He therefore defended the fiscal proposals in the budget as a necessary means of raising revenue to bring the deficit down to the 5% threshold of gross domestic product (GDP) and finance the economic recovery program.
Mr. Ofori-Atta said it was also a way to share the burden with the population in an effort to revive the economy and clean up public finances.
“We held firm until 2020, which also means that revenues have been hit and expenses have increased. So we have some pretty scary statistics if you look at the actual numbers in terms of interest payments and offsets, as opposed to the percentage of income we have. These are structural problems that we have to solve, ”he said.
Use of income
Speaking further on the tax measures, he said that each of these measures was well designed to address the specific challenges facing society.
In this context, he said, the government had resolved to ensure that the funds to be collected were used for the intended purposes.
Mr. Ofori-Atta said that the 5% tax on gross profits of banks meant “that there must be a collective responsibility of actors for the actions and inaction of their counterparts”.
“We have seen the strength of the sector since the cleanup exercise, and embedding them as a shared burden philosophy is the way to go. This is such that at the end of the day we all have to recognize the enormity of the challenges we have in terms of certain rigidities, ”he said.
The minister-designate further appealed to the country’s corporate executive bodies to have the courage to point out the evils of their counterparts, saying such actions have a collective impact on their general good.
Impact of digitization
Mr Ofori-Atta said the Ministry of Finance is confident that the introduction of digital solutions in tax collection and administration will help boost inflows and increase the country’s tax-to-GDP ratio to around 20%. .
He congratulated Mr. Charles Adu Boahen, representative of the President at the Ministry of Finance and outgoing Deputy Minister of Finance, for holding the fort in his absence.
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