GH₵31bn Lost Through Import Declaration Abuse — Ato Forson Reveals in 2026 Budget

Minister for Finance, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, has revealed that Ghana lost more than GH₵31 billion between April 2020 and August 2025 due to Import Declaration Forms (IDFs) that had no corresponding imports.

Describing the situation as alarming, he warned that such massive financial leakages continue to drain the country’s foreign reserves and threaten economic stability.

Presenting the 2026 Fiscal Budget to Parliament on Thursday, November 13, 2025, the Minister disclosed that Ghana processed 525,814 foreign-exchange transactions, valued at about GH₵83 billion, over the five-year period. Shockingly, only 10,440 of these transactions could be verified against actual imported goods.

“Between April 2020 and August 2025, over 525,000 transactions amounting to an equivalent of $83 billion were processed through ICOPS. But only 10,440 of these transactions were linked to actual imports,” Dr. Forson told Parliament.

He explained that the discrepancy means an equivalent of $31 billion was transferred abroad without any documentary proof of goods entering Ghana.

According to him, such practices significantly weaken the cedi and deprive the economy of funds needed for essential national development.

“These leaks bleed our reserves, weaken the Ghana cedi, and deprive the economy of resources that should have been used to build schools, roads, and hospitals,” he added.

Dr. Forson further announced new measures to curb the loopholes, including tighter monitoring of foreign-exchange transactions and stricter enforcement of import verification systems at the ports.

He also noted that importers of excavators will now require prior approval from the Ministry of Transport as part of the government’s effort to clamp down on abuses within the import system.

The Finance Minister emphasized that these interventions are aimed at sealing revenue leakages and strengthening Ghana’s economic management framework.