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The former president and flagbearer for the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has claimed that Ghana has the highest tax burden in West Africa. He made this statement while speaking at a campaign event in Okaikoi South.
According to the flagbearer for the NDC, the supposed high tax burden in Ghana has made the country’s neighbour, Côte d’Ivoire, a more appealing destination for investors due to its comparatively lower tax rates. Mahama’s claim has been captured in a video which has been circulating on X.
Fact-Check Ghana has verified the claim and presents the facts below.
To verify this claim, Fact-Check Ghana reviewed data from multiple credible sources, including the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), World Population Review, and the Tax Foundation’s 2023 Corporate Tax Rates around the World report. We also referenced published a global corporate tax ranking and analysis from OnDeck—an online small-business lender known for data analytics and digital technology in creditworthiness assessments, which published a global corporate tax ranking and analysis.
Claim: “If you look across the whole of West Africa, Ghana pays more taxes than any other country. Listen to me. When a white man comes and says that he wants to start a business in West Africa when he looks at the taxes paid in Cote d’Ivoire and the taxes paid in Ghana, where will he take his business? He will take it [the business] to Cote d’Ivoire because their taxes are very low. That is why we have said the NDC must reduce taxes”.
Verdict: False
According to the Tax Foundation’s 2023 report and supporting data from World Population Review and Trading Economics, Guinea has the highest corporate tax rate in West Africa at 35%.
Nigeria, Mali, Senegal and Niger follow with corporate tax rates pegged at 30% each. In comparison, the corporate tax rate of Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire is comparatively lower at a rate of 25%.
Supporting these findings, an analysis by Ondeck, a US-based online lending company on corporate tax rates globally pointed to Guinea as having the highest corporate tax rate (35%) in the West African region.
For personal income tax (PIT), Guinea and Senegal come at the top in the region with fixed personal income tax rates of 40% and 43% respectively. Ghana’s personal income tax rate stands below (30%), further challenging the claim of the highest tax burden to be inaccurate.
Côte d’Ivoire’s PIT on the other hand ranges from 1.5% to 80%.
Again, in the case of sales tax, Niger ranks highest with a rate of 19%. Ghana’s rate of 12.5% to 15% is lower than that of Niger and Côte d’Ivoire at a rate of 18%.
Below are tax rates for three main categories for West African states
| West African state | Corporate Tax | Personal Income Tax | Sales Tax/Value Added Tax |
| Ghana | 25% | 30% | 12.5% to 15% |
| Côte d’Ivoire | 25% | 1.5% to 80% | 18% |
| Benin | 30% & 25% for industrial companies | Progressive Tax Dependent on income | 18% |
| Burkina Faso | 27.5% (for foreign companies) | From 12.1% to 25% | 18% |
| Cabo Verde | 20% to 25% | 16.5% to 27.5% | 15% |
| The Gambia | 27% of net profit, or 1% of turnover on audited accounts (or 2% of turnover for unaudited accounts). | 1% to 3% | 15% |
| Guinea | 35% | 40% | 18% |
| Guinea Bissau | 25% | Progressive | 17% |
| Liberia | 25% for general 30% for mining and petroleum companies | Progressive | 7% (Goods and Services Tax) |
| Mali | 30% | Progressive | 18% |
| Niger | 30% | 7% to 24% | 19% |
| Nigeria | 30% | 24% | 7.5% |
| Senegal | 30% | 43% | 18% |
| Sierra Leone | 25% | 15% | 15% |
| Togo | 27% | – | 18% |
In light of the data gathered from multiple sources on the three main tax rates, it is clear Ghana does not have the highest tax burden in West Africa. Both corporate and personal income tax rates in countries like Guinea, Senegal, and Nigeria exceed Ghana’s. Ghana’s tax structure is comparatively competitive within the region.
Moreover, Côte d’Ivoire’s tax rates are not markedly lower than Ghana’s as asserted by former President Mahama. Therefore, given these findings, the former president’s claim that Ghana pays the highest taxes in West Africa is false.
