By Albert Allotey
Accra, Jan. 23, GNA – The Vision for Accelerated Sustainable Development, Ghana (VAST-Ghana) has called on the Ministries of Finance and Health to increase excise taxes on health harming products to protect public health.
The call comes in the wake of different recent reports by the World Health Organisation, which “reinforced the urgent need for Ghana to strengthen excise taxation on tobacco, alcohol, sugar-sweetened beverages, unhealthy diets, and other health-harming products to protect public health,”
The reports titled “Global Report on the Use of Sugar, Sweetened Beverage Tax, 2025,” “Global Report on the Use of Alcohol Taxes 2025, and “Cigarette Tax Scorecard 2025” further said increments in excise taxes stabilised health systems and secure sustainable domestic financing for non-communicable disease (NCD) prevention and control.
A statement by Mr Labram Musah, the Executive Director of VAST-Ghana and copied to the Ghana News Agency called on the government to act decisively by raising excise taxes and earmark the revenues for healthcare financing and NCDs prevention.
It said the WHO reports, of which copies can be sourced on the links https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240118942, https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240118928, made it clear that relatively low and poorly designed tax systems continue to allow harmful products to remain cheap and widely available while governments and households shoulder the long-term health and economic consequences.
The statement recalled a remark attributed to WHO Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus that “health taxes are one of the strongest tools we have for promoting health and preventing disease.”
The Director emphasised that, “Increasing taxes on products such as tobacco, alcohol, and sugary drinks reduces consumption while unlocking sustainable financing for essential health services.”
The statement indicated that the Director’s message is relevant for Ghana at a time when donor support is declining and domestic resource mobilization has become critical for sustaining health and social protection systems.
It said Ghana must rectify policy setbacks by ensuring that excise taxes were regularly adjusted to reflect inflation and income growth, thereby maintaining their effectiveness in reducing consumption and protecting health.
It noted that the WHO reports have mentioned several countries that have successfully earmarked health taxes revenues for health coverage expansion, NCD prevention and control programmes, alcohol control initiatives, and physical activity promotion.
They are Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Chad, Madagascar, Morocco, Gabon, New Zealand, Cabo Verde, Switzerland, Portugal, and Mongolia.
“Their experiences demonstrate that earmarking health taxes strengthens public support, improves accountability, and accelerates progress toward universal health coverage and disease prevention goals.”
The statement said Ghana stood at a critical policy crossroads, which could face a rising burden of NCDs alongside fiscal constraints in the health sector.
It pointed out that strengthening excise taxes on tobacco, alcohol, sugar-sweetened beverages, ultra-processed foods, and other unhealthy products offers a clear pathway to address both challenges simultaneously.
“Higher taxes will reduce harmful consumption, prevent avoidable illness and death, and generate predictable domestic revenue that can be invested in prevention, primary healthcare, and health system strengthening,” it stated.
It said the Ministry of Finance’s recent announcement to review the Excise Tax Amendment Act 2023 ahead of the 2027 Budget reflects important leadership.
The statement emphasised, “Strengthening and expanding excise taxes to cover unhealthy diets, ultra-processed foods and increasing excise taxes on plastics would amplify health benefits and strengthen domestic revenue for NCD prevention and health system resilience.”
It said the WHO reports had called on countries to raise and redesign taxes to increase the real prices of tobacco, alcohol, and sugary drinks by 2035.
It added that, “The recently passed Political Declaration of the 4th UN High-Level Meeting on NCDs and Mental Health also calls for countries to adopt increased excise taxes on unhealthy products as a means for prevention and sustainable healthcare financing.
“This initiative reflects global consensus that sustained price increases are essential to making harmful products less affordable over time and protecting population health. Ghana should align with this initiative by committing to progressive excise tax increases and comprehensive tax design reforms.”
The VAST-Ghana urged the government through the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Health, to resist industry pressure, misinformation, and exaggerated claims that seek to delay or weaken health tax reforms.
The VAST Ghana emphasised, that, “We affirm that civil society organizations across the country, together with regional and international partners, fully support decisive action to strengthen excise taxes and earmark revenues for health.
“Ghana can demonstrate leadership by translating global evidence into national policy that prioritizes health, equity, and sustainable development.”
It added, “The evidence is clear, and the moment for action is now. Strengthening and earmarking excise taxes on unhealthy products is not only a fiscal choice but a public health imperative.”
GNA
Edited by Benjamin Mensah