Unilever pays 13bn taxes

Unilever, Ghana, Limited yesterday held its annual general meeting in Accra.. Addressing the meeting Mr Ishmael Yamson, chairman of Unilever, told the share holders that the company paid C13 billion in duties and taxes to the Government last year. The figure represented an increase of 37 precent over that of 1993.

He said despite the unfavourable economic enviornment within which the company operated last year, it achieved a turnover of C106 billion compared to C77 billion in 1993 and describe it as a strong performance by the company..

Mr Yamson announced that dividend per share increase from C54 per share in 1993 to C85 per share in 1994 which would be paid in July On the Value Added Tax (VAT), Mr Yamson advised Ghanaians not push the government too hard into taking a panic decision to withdraw it or reduce the rate to a level that culd not support the budget, saying "We shall only end up with even bigger budgetory dificit.

"What we must do" he said, "is to dispassionately and elements of VAT - as Government and Parliament had already begun - and to agree to a forward which will be practicable and sstain the peace and stability we have enjoyed over the last 14 years.