Former Finance Minister Dr Mohammed Amin Adam is urging the government to review recent increases in fuel taxes and consider suspending or abolishing them, arguing that the existing GH¢2-per-litre diesel relief has not provided sufficient protection for consumers.
Dr Amin Adam said diesel prices remain between GH¢17.55 and GH¢18.99 per litre despite the relief, making a broader intervention necessary.
“What we need now is a comprehensive intervention by the government,” he said in a post on Ghana’s rising fuel prices.
The Karaga Member of Parliament argued that taxes and levies are among the main policy tools available to the government to cushion consumers when international petroleum prices and exchange-rate movements push up domestic fuel costs.
He explained that pump prices are determined largely by the international price of petroleum products, the exchange rate, taxes, levies and industry margins.
According to him, Ghana has limited influence over international petroleum prices because it is essentially a price-taker in the global market.
“When international prices rise, the landed cost of fuel rises. When the cedi depreciates, the domestic cost rises further. When the cedi strengthens, it can cushion part of the external shock,” he said.
Dr Amin Adam said the mechanism linking international prices and the exchange rate to domestic fuel prices was not unique to the current administration.
“It did not suddenly appear in January 2025,” he stated. “It existed under Akufo-Addo and Bawumia. It exists under Mahama.”
He further argued that some government measures had weakened the impact of the current relief.
He cited the GH¢1-per-litre fuel levy, increases in levies on fuel oil and the cedi’s reported 12 per cent depreciation this year as factors contributing to continued pressure at the pumps.
“If exchange-rate management was the responsibility of government then, it remains the responsibility of government today,” Dr Amin Adam stated.
He therefore called for the government to revisit the recent fuel tax increases, arguing that suspending or abolishing some of the taxes could provide consumers with more substantial relief as fuel prices remain elevated.
