By Albert Allotey
Accra, Sept. 11, GNA – Vision for Accelerated Sustainable Development, Ghana (VAST Ghana), a civil society organisation, has commended the Ministry of Finance for rejecting Accra Brewery Plc’s claim that reforms in the Excise Duty Bill could place 2,000 jobs at risk.
The VAST Ghana said while it recognised the contribution of businesses and workers across Ghana’s manufacturing and agricultural sectors, public policy, particularly fiscal policy affecting population health, must be guided by transparent evidence rather than projections that were presented without sufficient methodological justification.
It further applauded the Ministry for rightly challenging the basis of the claim, noting that the company did not provide the methodology, base year, price elasticity assumptions, or definition used to determine how 2,000 jobs were at risk.
A statement copied to the Ghana News Agency by Ms Jennifer Maame Ama Owusu, the Communication Manager of VAST Ghana, said claims relating to employment losses, economic collapse, reduced investment, and threats to local industries were well-established components of a broader industry playbook used globally to resist, delay, weaken, or deflect public health policies.
The statement praised the Ministry for demanding evidence to support the claims that the revised beer excise regime would threaten 2,000 jobs.
“This response sets an important standard for Ghana’s public policy process. Commercial claims should be examined, economic projections should be tested, and public health evidence should be given appropriate weight,” it stated.
“We at VAST Ghana encourage the Ministry of Finance to apply the same evidence-based discipline to the health consequences of alcohol taxation. Every fiscal measure affecting alcohol should be assessed against three questions, the statement said.
“Does it reduce the harm associated with its consumption? Does it protect young people and other vulnerable populations from alcohol-related harm? And does it generate sufficient public revenue while reducing the long-term health and economic costs associated with alcohol use?” were some of the key questions that should be considered, it said.
The statement said VAST Ghana believed these questions should become an integral part of Ghana’s future excise policy framework.
It recommended that as the process towards the 2027 Budget Statement was ongoing, the Ministry should act by extending hybrid excise taxation to all alcohol products.
“The current reforms within the Excise Tax Act 2026 apply only to wine and spirits, which are largely consumed by higher-income earning groups, whose purchasing power is less affected by tax increases.
“Meanwhile, alcoholic beverages more commonly consumed by lower-income earning groups remain subject to lower excise rates, and to ensure equity and maximise public health impact, hybrid excise taxation should cover all categories of alcohol,” the statement said.
It called for a repeal of the 20 per cent excise tax cut on fruit juices and review of the definition of fruit juices, stating that the existing definition of fruit juice did not meet global best practices and therefore might impel the public health efforts the Ministry of Finance sought to achieve.
“Reinstating the 20 per cent excise tax and adopting a clear, enforceable definition of fruit juice will prevent loopholes and ensure the reforms deliver intended health outcomes,” the statement stressed.
It urged the Ministry to raise tobacco excise rates and index them to inflation and income growth, saying the current tobacco taxes remained below international benchmarks.
“Increasing rates and pegging them to inflation and income growth will preserve their real value and strengthen health financing,” the statement noted.
It further called for the repealing of the excise tax on electronic cigarettes, to help address the policy incoherence between the Excise Tax Act 2026 and the Public Health Act 2012.
“The current excise tax contradicts provisions in the Public Health Act. Repealing this tax will align fiscal measures with public health legislation and provide clarity on the regulation of novel nicotine products.”
The statement said Ghana’s growing non-communicable disease burden demanded decisive action and that stronger alcohol excise taxation was not an attack on industry or workers.
It explained that this was an evidence-based public policy intervention designed to reduce preventable harm, protect vulnerable populations, generate domestic revenue, and ensure that commercial interests did not outweigh the health and economic interests of the Ghanaian population.
VAST Ghana urged the Ministry of Finance and other agencies to remain resolute, protect the integrity of the excise tax reform process, and strengthen excise taxation in line with global best practices and WHO recommendations.
GNA
Edited by Christabel Addo