Ghana targets 6.3-pct GDP growth in 2017

The government of Ghana will work towards a 6.3-percent growth in gross domestic product (GDP) and a non-oil GDP growth of 4.6 in 2017, Minister for Finance Kenneth Ofori-Atta told parliament on Thursday.

It will also ensure a year-end fiscal deficit of 6.5 percent of GDP with efforts to strengthen revenue administration, plug loopholes in the tax collection system, reduce taxes and broaden the tax base, said the minister.

The minister said the focus of economic management would shift from taxation to production, and the government would review some taxes while abolishing others where necessary.

Ofori-Atta, a cousin of Ghana's President Nana Akufo-Addo, announced also emphasized that the government would work towards diversifying the economy.

He listed provisional GDP growth for 2016 as 3.6 percent while provisional fiscal deficit stood at 8.7 percent against a target of 5.0 percent, compared with the 6.2 percent recorded in 2015.

Total public debt stock stood at 73 percent of GDP or 122.3 billion Ghana cedis (25.85 billion U.S. dollars) in nominal terms at the end of 2016, compared with the 72 percent of GDP with a year-end inflation of 15.4 percent.

He announced a year-end inflation of 11.2 percent and a targeted average inflation of 12.4 in 2017 as in the medium-term overall GDP growth is expected to average 7.4 percent. Endit