A Senior Finance Lecturer at the University of Cape Coast Business School, Dr. Seyram Kawor, says the upcoming 2026 budget will serve as a key test of the government’s commitment to fiscal discipline and sustainable economic management.
According to him, while the government has made several assurances about prudent spending and economic recovery, the real proof will lie in how it manages expenditure and revenue in the next fiscal year.
Speaking to Joy Business, Dr. Kawor commended the government for showing restraint in recent months but urged policymakers to stay the course by sealing revenue leakages and implementing long-promised tax reforms.
“They’ve played a good role in ensuring that they do not spend unnecessarily. We just hope that they will continue to maintain this and close revenue leakages that are happening in the system,” he said.
He expressed optimism that the 2026 budget, expected to be presented in November, would introduce the promised tax reforms to help the country mobilize more domestic revenue and reduce its dependence on borrowing.
“The tax reforms that they told us they are going to implement we’re hoping that in November, when they read the next budget, these reforms will come on board so that we mobilize enough tax revenue in the country,” he added.
Dr. Kawor also raised environmental concerns, calling on the government to ensure that gold mobilization initiatives such as the Gold Board do not come at the expense of Ghana’s natural resources.
“The Gold Board is working and mobilizing gold, but the environment is being destroyed. Once we destroy our forest reserves and water bodies, we destroy life itself, and we will end up spending more to fix those problems,” he warned.
He further cautioned against repeating past economic mistakes, urging the Finance Minister to adhere strictly to fiscal prudence.
“We’ve heard ‘we’ve turned the corner’ before, but that turned into agony for everyone. We don’t want to go back to those same situations in the future,” he stressed.
The 2026 budget, expected in Parliament next month, is anticipated to outline the next phase of Ghana’s economic recovery program under the IMF-supported framework.
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