Chief Executive Officer of the Chamber, Dr Ing. Edem Ashigbey
Telcos in Ghana have reduced call and data tariffs to reflect the reduction in the Communication Service Tax (CS) from 9% to 5%.
In a statement released on Monday, September 14, 2020, the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications said: “mobile network operators will adjust tariffs to reflect the 4% reduction in Communications Service Tax by Tuesday 15th of September 2020.”
The statement said the modifications will represent 5% CST charge and would be applied through a tariff adjustment on the products and services of the Mobile Network Operators, per the passage of the Communication Services Tax (Amendment) Act, 2020 (Act 1025).
Chief Executive Officer of the Chamber, Dr Ing. Edem Ashigbey said, “The tariff adjustment program means when our customers pay the same price they would enjoy more, which is in line with the Government’s measures in alleviating cost burden on citizens in the wake of the global pandemic.”
According to him, the smooth reconfiguration of telcos’ systems to accommodate the commercial and technical requirements, is a testament of the effective dialogue and stakeholder engagements led by the Finance Ministry as well as its supervising Ministry and agencies.
Dr Ken Ashigbey said each telco will notify their respective customers on the completion of the modification exercise and provide further transparency on the adjusted tariffs of their products and services while offering other relevant information post usage of these services.
He said the mobile industry remains committed to the socio-economic development of Ghana and that remains “our sole object and focus in driving and supporting Ghana’s digitisation agenda.”
Finance Minister announced the reduction in his Mid-Year Budget Review in Parliament in July this year, as part of the COVID-19 relief packages.
Following the Minister’s announcement, the telcos, through the telecoms chamber also announced the reduction will reflect in tariffs from Tuesday, September 15, 2020, because they needed time to reconfigure their systems for a smooth transition.
