The Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) has sent strong signals to the government vehemently opposing its intention to impose additional taxes on beverage companies.
AGI says it has picked very reliable intelligence that the government is contemplating the introduction of a new tax on beverage companies that produce sugary drinks. This new tax, AGI says is the aim of the government to leverage to reduce sugar consumption and promote public health.
In a press conference to register their opposition, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AGI, Seth Twum Akwaboah explained that the proposed ‘sugar tax’ on beverage companies is unfair and discriminatory.
Targeting just beverage companies, Seth Twum Akwaboah says is selective and impractical. In the view of AGI, if the intention of the government is the promotion of public health, then the tax should be equitably applied across all sugar-containing products not just beverage companies.
“There are some intentions of the government to impose some taxes on the beverage companies and we think that that has to be looked at in a very pragmatic way. If the intention is to protect our health by imposing sugar taxes on beverages, then it must be extended to all other products that have sugar. Otherwise, it becomes discriminatory,” the CEO of AGI told the media.
He added, “We pick information from various sources and we engage on that. So we wouldn’t like to see a new tax imposed on the beverage companies simply because we want to reduce sugar intake. In practice, it doesn’t.”
The association insists that the government must take a pragmatic approach to addressing health concerns rather than imposing a tax that could cripple beverage companies without achieving its intended purpose.
Meanwhile, AGI is welcoming the intention of the government to abolish taxes such as the COVID-19 levy, E-levy, and other nuisance taxes aimed at bringing relief to businesses.
As the government prepares its maiden budget, it is unclear how it will manage this stance of AGI at a time that it badly needs to significantly increase revenue to fund programs and meet its debt obligations.
