GRA Commissioner-General Retires, Two New Board Members Sworn-In

Mr Kofi Nti, the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority, will retire from the organisation, effective October 1, 2019.

In his place, Mr Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah, Commissioner for Domestic Tax Revenue Division (DTRD), will become the acting Commissioner-General and also be responsible for DTRD.

A statement from the Public Relations Unit of the Ministry of Finance said Mr Ken Ofori-Atta the Minister thanked Mr Nti for his meritorious service and commended him for his diligence in establishing a platform for a new and transformed GRA.

Meanwhile, the Minister on Friday swore-in Professor Stephen Adei as the new Chair of the Board of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), and Mr Eugene Asante Ofosuhene as a Board Member.

Mr Ken Ofori-Atta told the new board members of government’s faith in their ability to contribute towards the elimination of revenue administration inefficiencies, undue external influences, unassigned ‘security personnel’ and corruption.
The Minister stressed that they bring renewed hope and that he has strong trust in their high moral standing and patriotism.

Mr Ofori-Atta charged the two new board members to help GRA build a strong reputation for discipline, integrity and righteousness, and be a meritocratic organisation that is known for high performance.

The board should also ensure digitised internal processes in Custom and Domestic taxes that improve responsiveness to the public and fully implement digital systems that enable citizens access to tax services anytime and anywhere.
He called on the public to fulfill their civic responsibilities to pay their taxes adding that a partnership has been established with Faith-Based Organisations to encourage their congregations to “give to Caesar what is Caesar’s” and promote a new responsiveness for all citizens to protect the public purse.

“GRA is well-positioned to lead Ghana’s aspiration to use digital technologies to improve the citizen experience, broaden the tax base and to particularly capitalise on the widespread penetration of mobile phones in the economy,” he said.
“Government is aiming to raise GH¢ 45.2bn in domestic revenues as the 2019 target even though GRA is 7.3 percent behind target as at end of July,” Mr Ofori-Atta said.

He said while the country’s tax revenues had grown consistently over the last few years, Ghana’s tax-to-GDP ratio at 17.6 per cent was still well below the middle-income country average for Africa.

As such, GRA’s efficiency in tax collection has become even more crucial for achieving sustainable revenue targets that reflect Ghana’s developmental agenda. The contribution of the two new Members of the Board is essential to ensuring the achievement of GRA’s objective of revenue mobilisation in an era of Ghana Beyond Aid.

The two new Board Members bring on board a critical knowledge and wisdom acquired through their rich experiences, which the Minister believes will be required to confront the challenges to raising the targeted revenue to support government’s programmes and activities.

Professor Adei is an accomplished change agent and fearless patriot, while Mr Ofosuhene, a former Controller & Accountant-General, is a disciplined professional. Both are men of unquestioned integrity.

In response, the new Chairperson for the Board, Professor Adei, said “I have an absolute zero-tolerance for corruption and as captains of the ship, we must be seen not to do wrong”.

On his part, Mr Ofosuhene said “the era of using GRA for personal interest is over”.