Members of the Ghana Hotels Association have cautioned the new government to live by its promise and reduce the current 17.5 % VAT rate to the 3% Flat Rate within the first quarter of the year.
They believe the move will enable the hotel industry progress and expand.
The Greater Accra Regional Chairman for the Ghana Hotels Association, Dr. Edward Ackah Nyameke Junior who spoke to Citi Business News on the issue said they believe this reduction will help the industry.
“Everything that we see is a signal of the government’s intention; for instance, there has been this assurance of a reduction of the 17.5 % VAT rate to 3 % for the industry to have a breather,” he said.
Dr. Ackah Nyameke added, “the high taxes have affected the industry negatively and fortunately we are looking forward to that and we want some clear signals in the first quarter that this will be done.”
Meanwhile Dr. Nyameke has hinted of plans by the Ghana Hotels Association to meet with the incoming minister of tourism to directly address their grievances at.
He was hopeful the discussion should give the way forward for the industry.
“We are hoping that in the first quarter if a minister is appointed for the tourism sector, we will have the opportunity to interact with him or her so that we can give a clear vision of some of the challenges we have, one of which is the numerous regulatory bodies like the Food and Drugs authority, the Registrar General’s Department, Environmental Protection Agency and the District Assemblies.
According to the hoteliers, the meeting will help coordinate the operations of the various bodies.
“These bodies operate separately when it comes to fixing processing fees and we want something to be done about this,” Dr. Ackah Nyameke stressed.
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By: Anita Arthur/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana