The Minority in Parliament has called on the government to scrap the GH₵1 levy on petroleum products, arguing that it has outlived its purpose and is worsening the financial burden on citizens amid rising fuel costs.
Deputy Ranking Member of the Energy Committee, Collins Adomako Mensah, said the ongoing tensions involving Israel, the United States, and Iran have driven up global crude oil prices, directly impacting fuel costs in Ghana.
“Keeping the one Ghana Cedi levy is punishment,” he said, urging the government to repeal it immediately under a certificate of urgency and conduct a comprehensive review of all taxes and levies embedded in petroleum prices.
As of the second pricing window of March 2026, diesel was selling at GH₵15.60 per litre, and petrol had exceeded GH₵12.40 per litre. The Energy Sector Levy’s Amendment Act of 2025 added approximately GH₵1 to the price build-up, bringing the total levy for debt repayment and sector shortfall to GH₵1.95 for petrol and GH₵1.93 for diesel.
The Minority pointed out that the government had fully addressed the energy sector’s outstanding debt between January and December 2025, paying about $1.47 billion, including repayment of GH₵597 million drawn on the World Bank partial risk guarantee and settlement of all pending gas invoices.
“With the World Bank guarantee fully restored and the energy sector debt cleared, the justification for the GH₵1 levy has completely evaporated,” Mensah said.
He added that the government should also consider suspending or restructuring other embedded levies to cushion consumers from the global oil price shock.
