The abolition of import taxes on supplies used by the regional printing sector has been guaranteed by the Parliamentary Select Committee on Education.
The committee is certain that eliminating the levies will help the printing sector grow and become competitive with overseas printers.
The commitment was made by the committee's chairman, Kwabena Amankwah Asiamah, yesterday as the committee members visited G-PAK Limited, a division of Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL), to learn more about the status of the production of primary school textbooks.
Ato Afful, the Managing Director of the GCGL and Board Chairman of G-PAK Limited, had asked Parliament to take the abolition of import tariffs on printing materials into consideration in order to support the operations of local printers because the levies had raised production costs.
Leading printing and packaging company G-PAK Limited has been in operation for the past 49 years.
It's time to conduct a thorough analysis of the situation, according to Mr. Asiamah, who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for Fanteakwa North in the Eastern Region. He claimed that taxes on raw materials like paper and ink increased the production costs of businesses engaged in the printing of textbooks and newspapers.
The initial
He said it was the first time the committee had been informed of the necessity to eliminate tariffs on imported raw materials used by the regional printing sector.
As a result, he said, the committee would incorporate it into its report and present it to Parliament when the House met again for discussion.
Satisfaction
Mr. Asiamah acknowledged his pleasure with the job G-PAK had completed so far and expressed the expectation that the business would stick to the schedule for publishing the textbooks.
Benefits
Mr. Afful welcomed the committee members and stated that the local printing sector found it challenging to remain profitable and competitive due to the zero tax rating on completed printed goods entering the nation as opposed to tariffs on imported raw materials.
He said that the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) Commissioner-General was approached about the situation by the GCGL some time ago, but the commissioner responded that the GRA was not authorised to address the matter and that Parliament should do so instead.
While thanking the committee for coming, Mr. Afful was certain that the discussion of tariffs on imported raw materials will be brought up for further consideration.
When that was accomplished, he claimed, the local printing sector would be strengthened, more employment would be created, and the overall economy would benefit greatly.
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The abolition of import taxes on supplies used by the regional printing sector has been guaranteed by the Parliamentary Select Committee on Education.
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