Civil society organisations (CSOs) have called on the government to make job creation, stronger revenue mobilisation and greater transparency central to the 2027 Budget Statement and Economic Policy. The demands were made at a CSO engagement on the 2027 Budget in Accra, where representatives of various CSOs presented proposals for consideration by the Ministry of Finance.
Job Creation Tops CSO Agenda
On the macroeconomic outlook, a representative of the Economic Governance Platform, Ebenezer Okley, said the government should leverage the gains made in macroeconomic stability to deliver concrete benefits to Ghanaians. He said while the government had focused significantly on restoring macroeconomic stability over the past year and into 2026, the priority for the 2027 Budget should be to translate that stability into jobs, price stability and improved welfare.
Okley stressed that the 2027 Budget should clearly demonstrate how macroeconomic stability would lead to increased employment and stronger economic fundamentals. He added that the government should focus on job creation, particularly in the formal sector, to reduce unemployment and poverty.
Strengthening Mineral Revenue Management
David Adjei of the National Resource Governance Institute (NRGI) called for a comprehensive framework for managing mineral revenues. He said mineral revenues were currently governed by different laws and proposed that royalties, taxes and other mineral-related revenues be brought under a single framework to make it easier to track how the proceeds were collected, allocated and spent.
Under the proposed framework, mineral revenues could be channelled into the national budget, savings for future generations and sub-national governments. Adjei also called for greater clarity on the mandate and financing of the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF), questioning whether its current allocation of two per cent of mineral royalties was sufficient to enable the fund to effectively manage mineral-related investments.
Tackling Illicit Financial Flows and Tax Exemptions
For the Tax Justice Coalition, its National Coordinator, Benedict Doh, called for stronger action against illicit financial flows and greater transparency in the granting of tax exemptions. He said literature indicated that about 65 per cent of illicit financial flows were associated with commercial activities, making stronger transfer-pricing enforcement critical to protecting domestic revenue.
Doh also proposed incentives to encourage voluntary tax compliance, suggesting that taxpayers who insisted on receiving VAT invoices or receipts from businesses could be rewarded through tax reliefs, refunds or other incentives.
CSOs to Present Proposals to Finance Minister
The CSO engagement on the 2027 Budget comes as the government prepares the 2027 Budget, which Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson is expected to present to Parliament in November. The minister has previously indicated that the government’s proposed “New Economy” programme, aimed at moving the economy from stability to accelerated development and job creation, will be outlined in the 2027 Budget.
The engagement is aimed at gathering inputs from civil society into the 2027 Budget and the medium-term framework. The proposals presented by CSOs will be considered by the Ministry of Finance as it finalises the 2027 Budget. The outcome of the engagement will have a significant impact on the direction of the 2027 Budget and the government’s economic policy.
Source: Joy Online
