August 2019

The Ghana Chamber of young Entrepreneurs (GCYE) has said it is open to further discussions with the government over the imposition of taxes on consumers especially its members. This resolution was disclosed by Dr.Sherif Ghali, the CEO of GCYE, and his executives. This follows the increase in the communication service tax (CST) to 9% according to the Finance Minister at the 2019 Mid-year Budget review; the Government proposes to increase the communication service tax (CST) to nine percent to develop the foundation for the creation of a viable technology ecosystem in the country. The Communication Service Tax (CST) was introduced in 2008 at an ad valorem rate of six percent. The tax is levied on charges payable by consumers for the use of communication services. The communication service tax ACT 2008 (Act 754) stipulates that at least 20% of the revenue generated from the tax shall be used to finance the youth employment programme. Per our observation, this is the second time telcos tariff has been increased in just less than ten months as a result of government fiscal management. In November 2018, the then Mid-year budget review saw the separation of the 5 percent GETFund and NHIL levies from the VAT. This led to telcos increasing their tariffs effective November 1, 2018, transferring the cost to consumers. About more than 90% of young entrepreneurs in Ghana depend on the services of the telcos in running their businesses and with the already operational burden on these young entrepreneurs such as annual business operating permits charged by municipalities, high cost of office rent, high cost of fuel, high lending rate among many other related challenges confronting young entrepreneurs, the Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs (GCYE) is calling on the government and the ministry of communication to reconsider this increment. GCYE was established under the NYA with the primary aim of advocating and serving as the mouthpiece of young entrepreneurs, providing information on the funding source, facilitate access to credit and provide business support services to its members. It is an associate member of the Private Enterprise Federation and the Commonwealth Alliance of Young Entrepreneurs and African Young Entrepreneurs with over 1,000 registered young entrepreneurs across the regions of Ghana. GCYE believes that if nothing is done about this CST increment, many young entrepreneurs will face lots of challenges in their business since most will not able to bear its consequent burden

The largest network on young entrepreneurs in Ghana has officially been espoused as members of the Private Enterprise Federation. The Private Enterprise Federation was established in 1994 as the apex institution to forge consensus and provide the leadership voice for advocacy, on the initiative of the Association of Ghana Industries, Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ghana Employers’ Association, and the Federation of Associations of Ghanaian Exporters; with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The Ghana Association of Bankers (GAB) was later admitted as the fifth founding member and the Ghana Chamber of Mines (GCM) was also added as a member later on. Four (4) new members namely, Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications (GCT), the Ghana Insurers’ Association (GIA), the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMC’s) and the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Operators Association (GLiPGOA) have joined the Federation as full-fledged members since October 2012. The latest members to join is the Association of Small Scale Industries (ASSI), the biggest informal association and the Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors (CBOD), were also admitted as members by the Governing Council in 2015 and 2016 respectively. PEF as a non-profit, non-political, autonomous institution and a Company Limited by guarantees under the Ghana Companies Code, Act 179, has its membership open to all private businesses and trade associations from both the formal and informal sectors of the economy. Five new applications for membership including that of the biggest informal sector association are pending for consideration and approval by the Federation’s Governing Council. GCYE who shares in the vision and mission of PEF applied for a membership and was recently approved by the governing board of the Federation. According to the CEO of GCYE Mr. Sherif Ghali, “this is a great opportunity for us as budding young entrepreneurs to learn from captains of the industry and to tap into the rich advocacy level of the Federation to drum home our concerns and policy recommendations” He added that, young entrepreneurs should consider this as a milestone and join the Chamber to have their concerns reached decision making bodies and amplify their network to accelerate their business growth. The Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs (GCYE) is a network of young Ghanaian business owners with interest covering every sector of the private enterprise. As an advocacy group, GCYE was formed with the primary objective to unite, engage, and promote initiatives and innovation of young entrepreneurs to facilitate support in their pursuit of economic prosperity. GCYE aims to drive trade, advocate for reforms, provide business support services with needed information on funding source to facilitate access to credit and improve the business eco-system for the enhancement of entrepreneurship culture among young people in Ghana. The GCYE is duly registered with the Registrar Generals Department and the National Youth Authority (NYA) with a membership of 7500 across the nation. The GCYE is an associate member of Commonwealth Alliance of Young Entrepreneurs-West African (CAYE-WA). https://www.modernghana.com/news/933223/ghana-chamber-of-young-entrepreneurs-now-members-of-the-priv.html?fbclid=IwAR2OvPYdTIWzcWtH01zUn5eHBbbK7h2VkFt01dCQ0nuRersRGL4FqFLupCk