The government has abolished the 20 per cent excise duty on locally manufactured fruit juices introduced in 2023, in a move aimed at supporting agro-processing and boosting local industry.
The decision is expected to ease the tax burden on domestic manufacturers, encourage investment and create jobs across the agricultural value chain.
Presenting the 2026 Mid-Year Budget review in Parliament in Accra yesterday, the Minister of Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, said the measure formed part of broader reforms under the Excise Duty Bill currently before Parliament.
The bill, he explained, sought to improve revenue mobilisation, strengthen tax compliance and promote local production. Dr Forson said the removal of the excise duty on locally produced fruit juices was intended to provide relief to processors and stimulate growth in the agro-processing sector.
He added that the government remained committed to implementing tax policies that supported industrial expansion while ensuring a fair and efficient revenue system.
The minister, however, pointed to significant weaknesses in the country’s excise duty regime, particularly in the taxation of imported wines and spirits.
He disclosed that between 2023 and 2025, imports of wines and spirits with a taxable value exceeding Gh¢5 billion entered the country.
Out of this amount, he said about 78 per cent, valued at nearly GH¢4 billion, was placed under customs procedures such as warehousing, transit, temporary admission and free zones, without attracting excise duty.
Dr Forson described the situation as unsustainable, noting that “almost four out of every five cedis of the potential excise tax net, leaving only one cedi out of every five subject to excise duty.”
To address the challenge, he said the government would introduce a hybrid excise duty system, combining value-based taxation for wines and spirits.
The approach, he explained, would help eliminate persistent undervaluation and product misclassification, while ensuring that a minimum level of tax was paid regardless of declared values.
Dr Forson further announced that the existing sliding-scale excise duty rates on beer and stout would be reviewed to align with revenue objectives, while maintaining incentives for local manufacturers.
On customs administration, the minister highlighted gains from the deployment of the Publican AI Trade Solution, introduced in March this year to improve valuation and enhance revenue collection.
He said the system had strengthened the ability of customs to detect undervalued imports and identify high-risk declarations that previously went unnoticed.
According to him, from its pilot phase in January and February to full rollout between March and July 17, the system increased assessed customs collections by more than US$300 million.
This represents a 17.5 per cent increase over values originally declared by importers. Dr Forson added that although the system raised the overall declared cost, insurance and freight value of imports by about 6.3 per cent, it led to a much higher increase in assessed collections, demonstrating its effectiveness.
He said since its deployment, about 366,000 import declarations had been analysed, with nearly one in four flagged for one or more valuation risk indicators requiring further review by Customs officers.
