Assemblies could raise nearly GH¢20bn from property rates, Ayariga says

Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in Ghana could raise close to GH¢20 billion a year from property rates alone if properties across the country are properly identified, valued and billed, Minister-designate Mahama Ayariga has said.

Mr Ayariga, the MP for Bawku Central, made the projection during his vetting by Parliament's Appointments Committee in Accra on Thursday, August 27.

He was responding to questions from Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin about measures he would introduce to improve revenue mobilisation at the local level if approved as Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs.

Mr Ayariga said the GH¢20bn figure was based on what he described as "some basic analysis" conducted with experts.

He presented it as a conservative estimate based on property rates, adding that other local revenue sources, including basic rates, market tolls and lorry park tolls, could generate additional income.

The proposal would represent a major increase in the revenue available to local assemblies and form part of Mr Ayariga's vision of making them more financially independent.

He argued that the Constitution envisaged assemblies becoming sufficiently self-financing, with allocations from the District Assemblies Common Fund primarily supporting development projects such as clinics and infrastructure.

"Assemblies have largely failed" to meet that expectation, Mr Ayariga told the committee.

He said that after his nomination, he had told the Finance Minister that his ministry could eventually become "richer" than the Finance Ministry if assemblies fully exercised their revenue-raising powers.

Nationwide property valuation

Mr Ayariga proposed a fresh nationwide exercise to identify, describe and value properties for rating purposes.

He said Ghana's existing street-naming and house-numbering programme had largely established where properties were located but did not capture enough information about their physical characteristics or value.

The proposed exercise would therefore go beyond identifying properties to establish the information needed to determine appropriate property rates.

Mr Ayariga also proposed digitising the entire process, from property identification and valuation to billing, payment and the eventual disbursement of revenue.

He said this would help reduce opportunities for local revenue to be diverted.

The minister-designate also raised concerns about the political difficulties some District Chief Executives face when collecting property rates.

He said politically influential people, including some traditional rulers and party loyalists, could be difficult to collect rates from, while some individuals given revenue-collection responsibilities as political rewards subsequently felt little obligation to account for the money collected.

GH¢20bn target raises questions

Mr Ayariga's projection is substantially higher than a separate figure previously published by the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), which oversees the MyAssembly property-rate platform.

The GRA has said billing more than 10 million identified properties nationwide through the platform is expected to generate more than GH¢1.77 billion annually.

A bigger role for local government

Mr Ayariga argued that District Chief Executives already have legal authority to levy rates on properties and residents within their districts.

He contrasted this with central government revenue sources such as VAT, income tax and import duties.

He cited cities including London, New York and Istanbul as examples where local authorities have larger budgets than central governments, using them to illustrate the potential for stronger local revenue mobilisation.

The proposed reforms would therefore seek to shift assemblies away from dependence on central government transfers and towards greater use of their existing revenue-raising powers.

The vetting also included questions about the District Assemblies Common Fund.

Mr Ayariga said MPs were entitled only to a small parliamentary allocation for constituency emergencies, managed through Assembly accounts, and that this was separate from the wider Common Fund.

The use of the Common Fund, he said, was governed by Assembly guidelines and resolutions.

Mr Ayariga has been nominated to replace Ahmed Ibrahim, the MP for Banda, who has been reassigned to the Ministry of Works and Housing following President John Dramani Mahama's ministerial reshuffle announced on August 7, 2026.

If approved, the new minister will face the challenge of turning the proposed revenue potential into actual collections while addressing property valuation, enforcement, political interference and accountability at the local level.