The Minister for Aviation, Cecilia Abena Dapaah has indicated that the withdrawal of the 17.5 percent Value Added Tax (VAT) on domestic airline fares has led to a reasonable percentile reduction in air fares, which has made travel more affordable.
Following a question by the Adaklu MP, Kwame Governs Agbodza, Cecilia Dapaah stated on the floor of Parliament that the removal of the 17.5 percent VAT did not only lead to a reduction in domestic air fares, but also led to an increase in the number of passengers and travels.
“Domestic passengers throughput for May to December, 2017 was 323,754 as against 295,278 for the same period in 2016, representing a 9.64% increase”, she stated.
The Aviation Minister again pointed out that Starbow reduced its domestic air fares from May to November, 2017 from GH¢375 to GH¢315 for Accra-Tamale and GH¢315 to GH¢265 for Accra-Kumasi/Accra-Takoradi. Again, she stated that Africa World Airlines reduced its fares from the range of GH¢375-500 to GH¢320-400 for Accra-Tamale and GH¢315-400 to GH¢270-340 for Accra-Kumasi/Accra-Takoradi.
Cecilia Abena Dapaah further indicated that fares of domestic flights are revised periodically by the operators according to the peak and off-peak seasons.
She explained that “Africa World Airlines revised and published its fares for the peak season on November, 2017. The revised fares ranged between GH¢285-395 for Accra-Kumasi, GH¢335-445 for Accra-Tamale and GH¢275-365 for Accra-Takoradi”.
He further assured the house that the ministry had intensified monitoring on domestic operators in the setting of domestic air fares to ensure that it meets the expectations of the Government and the travelling public.
In her concluding statement, the Aviation Minister reiterated that the ministry’s doors are opened to support local entrepreneurs and prospective investors who have plans to commence domestic airline operations.
Source: GhanaJustice/S.Ayisi
