GRi in Parliament 19
– 06 - 2003
Facelift for Aburi Botanical Gardens
Parliament adopts
request for tax and duty exemptions
Facelift for
Aburi Botanical Gardens
The Ministry of Tourism and
Modernisation of the Capital City, Ghana Tourist Development Company and the
Department of Parks and Gardens should form the venture.
Jake Obetsebi
Lamptey, Minister of Tourism and Modernisation of the
The Minister said the joint
venture would develop a new conference project into a 500 capacity multi-hall
complex and convention centre, expand and upgrade the current accommodation
units into a three-star status with outdoor recreational facilities.
The project also includes
designing and building an environmentally compatible
Obetsebi-Lamptey said the Gardens was currently
being managed by the Department of Parks and Gardens, however the Ministry had
identified it as a prime eco-tourism resource along the Akwapim
tourism circuit.
He said the Ministry was,
therefore, promoting the site for both domestic and international tourism
through its brochures and also encouraged tour operators to promote all
attractions in the Akwapim circuit including the Papa
Ye Village at Kokundru.
GRi…/
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Parliament
adopts request for tax and duty exemptions
Presenting the reports, the
Chairman of the Finance Committee, Eugene Atta Agyepong recommended to the House that the arterial roads
and traffic management project being executed by Messrs Sonitra
Limited be exempted from payment of duties and taxes amounting to 1,025,000
Euros being imported duties accruing to the project on equipment, spares and
materials for the rehabilitation works.
Agyepong said clause five of the special
conditions of the credit facility approved by Parliament in 1999, states that
the funds shall be exclusively allocated to the financing of expenditures
relating to the project net of any taxes, excises and duties.
The import of this provision is
that the Government of Ghana shall be responsible for the component of the
financing cost covering taxes and duties on materials and equipment for the
execution of the project; and withholding taxes.
Agyepong said the roads project, which
cost 20.9 million Euros would each have single carriageways of two lanes with
asphalt concrete surfacing and wide pedestrian walkways with streetlights and
covered concrete U-drains by the sides of the road when completed.
On the design and construction
of phase II of the Kpando-Worawora-Dambai road being
undertaken by Messrs Bilfinger and Berger, Agyepong asked the House to waive an amount of $2 .312m
being the total of taxes and import duties accruing to the project which cost
$21.5m.
Agyepong said the technical team
informed the Finance Committee that if these exemptions are not granted and the
contractor is made to pay, he would have to be fully reimbursed by Government.
Furthermore, if the payment of the reimbursable amount is delayed, Government
would have to pay interest at a rate of one per cent above the Bank of Ghana
lending rate and that this would add to the cost of the project thus putting
additional strain on Government's expenditure.
The Committee noted that
currently, the portion of the Kpando-Worawora-Dambai
road, which is not tarred, has deteriorated considerably over the last couple
of years giving rise to serious driving difficulties, high transport costs and
safety problems. This, Agyepong said have adversely
affected agricultural and fish production and brisk trading that could
facilitate socio-economic development and poverty reduction in the area.
GRi…/
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