ACCRA — As the Ghanaian capital had the worst air quality in the world at some points last month, with pollution almost twice as bad as Delhi’s, you might expect residents to welcome a plan to reduce the country’s carbon emissions. Yet a policy dubbed ‘the emissions levy’ has been met with growing concern.
Ghana’s government rolled out its carbon tax – the third country in Africa to do so after South Africa and Mauritius – just days before Accra’s air pollution was deemed ‘hazardous’, in part due to the Harmattan season, when dry northeasterly winds carry dust particles from the Sahara desert over West Africa.
The new tax will see Ghanaian residents pay between GHS75 ($6) and GHS300 ($24) annually for vehicles they own, while industries including construction, manufacturing, mining, oil and gas and electricity will pay GHS100 ($8) per tonne of emissions monthly.
