In a strategic push to tackle the surge in illicit financial flows (IFFs) and promote progressive taxation, the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) has trained a cohort of Ghanaian journalists to enhance their capacity in investigating and reporting on financial crimes and tax injustices.

Ghana reportedly loses over US$3 billion annually to illicit financial activities such as money laundering, tax evasion, transfer pricing, and other corrupt practices — a trend mirrored across the African continent, which suffers an estimated $50 billion loss each year.

These criminal financial activities continue to undermine development efforts, entrench poverty, and fuel inequality and conflict across the region.

Speaking at a two-day intensive training workshop in Kumasi, Edward Cudjoe, Ashanti Regional Director of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), raised alarm over the magnitude of the threat.

“The extent of illicit financial flows is getting bigger, and Ghana is no exception. We are losing billions of dollars through illicit financial flows. It denies countries the funds that they could have ordinarily used for development,” he warned.

Mr Cudjoe stressed the critical role of journalists in combating these complex crimes, urging them to sharpen their investigative tools and shine a light on the channels through which public funds are illicitly siphoned offshore.

“As integral partners in dealing with crime, it is always important that we get to those who inform the public to set the tone and raise discussions on illicit financial flows,” he added.

Empowering Journalists

The training exposed participants to the legal, regulatory, and institutional frameworks addressing IFFs, and unpacked the sophisticated tactics used by offenders. It also introduced journalists to the operations of key international organisations leading the fight against financial crimes.

In addition, journalists were trained on the concept of progressive taxation, equipping them to better understand Ghana’s tax system and its impact on equity and justice.

Nii Addo, Executive Director of Green Tax Youth Africa, called for a shift away from regressive tax regimes that disproportionately burden the poor.

“Taxes must be fair, sustainable and equitable in order not to overburden the poor, vulnerable and marginalised in society. Government must rely more on taxes like corporate taxes that are progressive rather than on regressive taxes levied on everyone regardless,” he stated.

A Timely Response

Paul Gozo, Programmes Assistant for Media and Good Governance at MFWA, noted that the initiative was developed in response to a capacity gap within the media sector in relation to illicit financial flows and taxation policy.

“While illicit financial flows were thriving, we realised the media did not have the capacity, the training and the technical know-how to do stories on these critical issues,” he said. “The plan is to train 80 journalists on how to spot IFFs and issues of progressive taxation so that we can adequately report on it, get the issues to the fore and then see how we can curb it going forward.”

The training programme is part of the Strategic Partnership Initiative for Ghana and West Africa, supported by Oxfam Ghana and the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA).