A group of Civil Society Organisations demanding government’s removal of taxes on sanitary pads has thrown its weight behind the Member of Parliament for Madina, Francis-Xavier Sosu’s move to propose a Private Members Bill to achieve this aim.
The bill by the Madina MP seeks an amendment of the Customs Tariffs and Levies to remove the 15% VAT Act, 2022 (Act 1082), to reclassify menstrual hygiene products from final consumer goods to zero-rated essential social goods.
Pressure has been mounting on government to scrap the taxes because it has resulted in the high cost of product.
Speaking to Citi News, spokesperson for the group, Ama Pratt called on Parliament to do the needful.
“Not only is it in line with what we are asking for. He takes it a step further, and he wants to do it in a way that not only does it apply to this administration but all future administrations, so nobody can try this again. And definitely, that is what we have been yearning for. All of these advocacies are just so that these taxes go away. These are commitments.”
“… In this country, we talk a lot, and we sometimes get the wrong things done,” she stated.