Revenue mobilization is my number one priority as Finance Minister – Amin Adam

The Minister of Finance, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, has set revenue mobilisation as his top agenda.

He says this is necessary due to the many expenditure hurdles in the country’s governance structure.

He made the declaration in an interaction with officers of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority as part of his tour of the Tema Port.

Therefore, he charged the tax officials with reversing the shortfall of about 11 per cent in the first quarter revenue target.

According to data from the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, revenue was short by about 11% in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same time last year.

Declaring his intention to prioritise revenue mobilisation, Dr Amin Adam charged the officers to step up their work as more opportunities exist to boost revenue.

“Revenue mobilisation is my topmost priority because you can understand that we need money to fund the budget, pay for salaries and carry on other government projects”.

“We may not be able to cover all the things in the budget, so there is the need for some loan support, but don’t forget we must repay the loans, and therefore, we need the revenues to be able to cater for all this. The data shows that you are doing well and I want to commend you for it but also to remind you that there is a shortfall for the first quarter of about 11.3% and therefore I need you to do more to cover up and explore other opportunities that we can use to boost revenue for the state” he charged.

This is the first visit by the Minister of Finance to the ports as part of efforts to get adequate information on the operations of key revenue agencies.

The Commissioner General of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Rev. Dr. Amishaddai Owusu Amoah, hinted that although there had been a shortfall, customs collection at Tema Port has grown by more than 70% in the period.

He attributed this to the officers’ efforts to seal some loopholes in the collection system, especially in Tema, the country’s most concentrated port.

The Minister, together with the delegation, also paid a courtesy call to the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority to discuss pertinent issues of the high cost of doing business at the port.