The country realised ?16.8 trillion in tax revenue as against ?15.996 trillion set for last year. The total for 2003 was ?12.71 trillion.

The three revenue collecting agencies exceeded their targets by over five per cent.

Disclosing this to GRAPHIC recently, the Executive Secretary of the Revenue Agencies Governing Board (RAGB), Mr Harry Owusu, said the figure was provisional and the total tax revenue was expected to rise when the final figures were collated.

Mr Owusu said the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) increased its collection by 8.6 per cent to ?5.343 trillion as against a target of ?4.914 trillion, the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) collected ?9.311 trillion, about 2.2 per cent above the set target of ?9.11, while the Value Added Tax?s (VAT) collections amounted to ?2.145 trillion as against ?1.965 trillion, representing about 9.2 per cent increase.

Domestic revenue mobilization has been increasing since 2000, leading to a greater percentage domestic funding of the budget. The revenue rose from the 2000 figure of ?4.24 trillion to ?6.26 trillion in 2001, an increase of 55 per cent.

It again increased by 50 per cent in 2002 to ?8.17 trillion and to ?12.71 trillion in 2003, an increase of 12.71 per cent. Donor support for Ghana?s budget is now 40 per cent.

Mr Owusu said the good performance of the revenue agencies was as a result of greater efficiency on the ground bolstered by the following measures, including the establishment of an independent external audit system, intensification of tax payer education over the last three years, the introduction of the vehicle income tax (VIT) by the IRS, the setting up of the large tax payer unit (LTU) and the introduction of the GCNET, among others.

He said targets set were based on certain factors, including the gross domestic product, inflation and income levels and that the targets were realistic.

Two weeks ago, the IRS introduced tax stamps to target hawkers, tabletop traders and the entire informal sector.