Julie Essiam, the Commissioner-General of the Ghana  Revenue Authority, has announced she is executing a mission to transform the Authority’s way of discharging its mandate to make it more taxpayer-friendly and collaborative.

She called for a shift in GRA’s operations, moving away from “a purely enforcement-centric model towards one focused on partnership and collaboration with taxpayers”.

She announed this while addressing Customs Officers in the company of the  Minister of Finance, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, who was on a working visit to the Aflao border post. “Perception is people’s reality. That is why we are transitioning from an enforcement approach to collaboration and partnership with the taxpayer,” she said.

The GRA boss laid out plans for the improvement of  staff welfare and provide necessary logistics to improve revenue collection, while ensuring that taxpayers feel valued and supported by the Authority.

Vision 

She said the vision aligns with the broader efforts to increase revenue collection, and meet the country’s developmental needs.

According to her,  taxpayer-friendly approach will streamline processes, reduce bureaucracy, and ultimately enhance revenue generation for national development.

She said the GRA would implement programmes to educate the public on the importance of tax compliance and how collected revenue translates into tangible improvements for their communities.

She said modern technologies to streamline and enhance GRA’s operations would be employed. These include advanced data management systems, facilitating online tax filing processes, and equipping border posts with cutting-edge inspection equipment.