The government has announced plans to increase the Growth and Sustainability Levy on mining companies from 1% to 3%, a move aimed at ensuring Ghana reaps greater benefits from its extractive sector.
The government’s decision to increase the Growth and Sustainability Levy on mining companies from 1% to 3% is a crucial step towards ensuring Ghana maximizes its benefits from the extractive sector,” said Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson.
Presenting the 2025 budget on the theme “Resetting the Economy for the Ghana we Want” to Parliament, Forson emphasized that Ghana has failed to capitalize on its natural resource wealth, with natural resource rent accounting for 14% of GDP, while revenue from the extractive industry contributes only 1.5% of GDP.
Despite the global surge in gold prices, Ghana has not been able to take full advantage of this development. We have failed to fully capture the economic rent of our natural resources,” Forson stated.
The proposed increase in the Growth and Sustainability Levy aims to ensure Ghana gets its fair share of the windfall from rising gold prices, generating significant revenue to support development, infrastructure, and economic diversification.
This move signals a shift towards maximizing returns from natural resources to fuel sustainable growth, especially with Ghana’s economy under pressure. Parliament is expected to deliberate on the proposal in the coming weeks.