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The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has introduced ‘the Ghana Revenue Enhancement and Transformation (GREAT) project’ to improve upon professionalism through change in tax management processes.

Mr Ken Ofori-Attah, the Minister for Finance addressing a GRA forum for top 100 taxpayers in Accra said government was fully behind the Authority’s initiative to prosecute tax defaulters and evaders.

He urged all taxpayers particularly; the taxpayers at the Large Taxpayers Office to set good examples in tax compliance because taxes were essential for nation building and that government would like to see taxpayers as development partners who play critical roles in domestic revenue mobilisation.

Mr Ofori-Attah said the GRA was able to collect GHC16.84 billion between January and June, this year against a target of GHC17.95 billion; meaning actual collections experienced a GHC1.1billion (6.18 per cent) shortfall.

He added that, with the new projections, GRA was obliged to collect GHC23.38 billion over the half-year to enable Government meets its revenue target of GHC40.22 billion for the year.

He said Government’s strategy for revenue mobilisation was to enhance performance by the automation of systems, plugging of leakages, improving tax compliance and administration, the review of taxes, and the reorientation of work ethics in line with the country’s traditional laws.

He said, Government was backing the GREAT initiative because, information from Large Taxpayers Office showed that while some firms were compliant, others were not, adding, “Filing rates for corporate taxes, for example, fell from 65 per cent in 2016 to approximately 40 per cent in 2017”.

Mr Ofori-Attah said with the contribution of large taxpayers to domestic tax mobilisation exceeding 60 per cent, any default or delay in the payment of taxes by them posed a danger to the implementation and realisation of government’s development agenda.