Officials in Ghana have revealed that they intend taxing street beggars as the country makes efforts to raise enough revenue for developmental projects.
The country’s revenue authority has already served notice of taxing these beggars as well as hawkers selling all kinds of products in traffic.
A senior revenue official, Alhaji Yahaya Mohammed is reported by Starr FM in Accra to have told journalists that “Those who carry things on their heads to sell (hawkers) be it cloth or consumables, we will tax them, how much more people who earn daily”.
“GRA taxes foreigners in town and by law the beggars fall within the taxable threshold,” Alhaji Mohammed is quoted as saying.
The tax official claimed that persons deciding to beg for alms either as a business or a “hobby” must pay tax on those earnings since according to him, some of the beggars have secured assets and have made the “begging business” attractive.
Ghana’s major streets have been flooded by many beggars some of whom are foreigners from other African countries.
Source: Africafeeds.com
