Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) across all sixteen regions of the country have been directed by the Ministry of Local Government, Decentralization and Rural Development (MLGDRD), to take immediate steps to put in place appropriate structures to resume the collection of property rates in their localities.
The new directive is contained in a letter written by the Minister for Local Government, Decentralization and Rural Development, Dan Botwe, and addressed to Regional Ministers and Regional Coordinating Directors and copied to all MMDCEs and MMDCDs as well as the Finance Minister, Minister of State at MLGDRD, Deputy Minister at MLGDRD and the Commissioner General of Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).
Until 1 January 22023, the mandate to administer property rates and their collections was assigned to the local authorities/Municipalities. However, from 1 January 2023, the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), partnered with the Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to collect property rates using a Unified Common Property Rate Platform.
The Unified Common Property Rate Platform, Myassembly.gov.gh, was an end-to-end district revenue collection and administration platform for property rates, which is linked to the Ghana.gov.gh payment platform. However, in the 2024 Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the government presented to Parliament by Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta on 15 November 2023, the Akufo-Addo administration submitted to the house that it intends to review the entire Unified Common Property Rate Platform.
Minister’s directives
“As you may be aware, the government through the 2024 Budget Statement and Economic Policy delivered on 15 November 2023 by the Minister for Finance indicated concerning property rate collection that “government is reviewing the overall structures and processes to determine the optimal way forward. In the interim, Districts will resume collection until these challenges are resolved,” Mr Dan Botwe’s letter noted.
“Government’s policy direction is based on the challenges identified in the implementation of the Unified Common Platform for Property Rate Collection within the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAS),” the letter of the Minister for Local Government, Decentralization and Rural Development further read.
Steps to be taken
Accordingly, to ensure MMDAs’ preparedness to resume collection of Property Rates on an interim basis until the government reviews the overall structures and processes to determine the optimal way forward, “all MMDAs are to open new and dedicated bank accounts for Property Rate Collection”.
“Additionally, the new dedicated bank accounts will be linked to Ghana.gov for effective and efficient monitoring, and MMDAs with existing dedicated bank accounts for Property Rate Collection will be given a timeframe to close these Accounts” Mr Botwe stated in his letter.
“The MMDAs are also to prepare provisional bills/demand notices for property rate Fy2024 and the MLGDRD in collaboration with the Ghana Revenue Authority will ensure the provision of information to facilitate reconciliation of Bills/Demand Notices to avoid double billing” he added.
