E-Levy: It is too early to measure success – Finance Expert

Finance Expert, Owusu Adjabeng, asserts it is too early to have discussions on Ghana meeting its target with the newly introduced electronic transactions levy (e-levy).

The uncertainties associated with the introduction of the e-levy were numerous and came as no surprise to experts when Ghanaians withdrew monies from their mobile wallets. This was because of the inadequate information and misunderstandings amongst the citizenry.

The electronic transactions levy (e-levy) introduced by the government to generate additional cash for the government is raking in only 10% of estimated revenue, according to a leading member of the governing New Patriotic Party, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko.

The government commenced the implementation of the levy on May 1, 2022, after its initial announcement in the 2022 budget.

In a series of tweets, Mr. Otchere-Darko said the e-levy, since its implementation has generated less than GH¢60 million instead of the expected GH¢600 million.

“After 5 months of stalemate and bashing, the e-levy, after implementation, is delivering only 10% of estimated revenues; our revenues remain very low as compared to the rest of the world; debt levels dangerously high, cedi, like most currencies, struggling against the US dollar.”

Speaking about the issue with Samuel Eshun on the Happy Morning Show, Finance Expert, Owusu Adjabeng, stated, “It is way early to say we are not meeting our target with the e-levy. We are in the early days yet. Because of the uncertainties associated with a lot of new policies, it was no surprise to me when people began withdrawing their monies from their wallets as they didn’t understand the policy.”

The finance guru is hopeful Ghanaians will one day understand the levy, eventually leading the government to achieve its goals.

“It was expected for there to be a drop in transactions and amounts transferred after the e-levy was introduced. I mean a month is too early to measure the success or failure of the e-levy,” he said. According to him, the policy needs to operate for at least 3 months before the government can assess its success. He believes the e-levy will be a great revenue source for the government if sound measures are brought on board."