The Communications Minister, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, is pushing for mobile network operators to be taxed for the profit they make on mobile money transactions.
At a press conference in Accra, the Minister said the operators generate some GH¢71 million monthly on the transactions, yet that money remains untaxed.
Data from the Bank of Ghana last year showed that mobile money transactions increased from GH¢155 billion to GH¢233 billion representing 43% growth in just a year.
It also showed that the volume of transactions on the mobile money platform from 2017 to 2018 reached GH¢1.4 billion.
The value of transactions had also seen a significant increase from 2012 to 2018.
For instance, in 2012 total transactions, reached GH¢594 million and increased significantly every year to hit GH¢233 billion in 2018.
In June, the World Bank declared Ghana the fastest-growing mobile money market in Africa with registered accounts increasing six-fold.
This undoubtedly translates into huge profits for telecom companies and the Communications Minister wants to ensure that the State does not miss out on revenue from that sector.
Source:Fiilafmonline/Citi
