Equatorial Guinea: Meeting between Finance Minister and wholesaler chiefs

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According to the minister, the measures being adopted in this respect are in line with regional policy, bearing in mind that capital outflows abroad must be justified, and when they are transferred for the purpose of importing products, their entry must be justified, which has not been the case for these companies. However, when it is established that the transfers made are indeed for the purchase of products, a possible scenario of capital outflow is ruled out, leading to the conclusion that it is tax fraud, and for the minister, this practice harms not only the country’s foreign reserves, but also the rest of the States in the sub-region.

During their interventions, chiefs from Guinaco, Dominique, Pegasos, Joseph Amahad and Kaba Market, Victor King shared the concern that there would be high inflation for products if it was decided that they had to pay for everything they had not declared. They also presented to the minister the situation regarding high product costs from their suppliers’ warehouses.

For all these reasons, the minister first informed them that the BEAC would proceed with the application of the new mechanism, i.e. the companies would be able to make their transfers, but from now on they would have to declare the real value of the transfers, while it was also made clear to them that any compensation paid to the State could not have an impact on future prices, because it was the result of fraudulent actions carried out by these companies in the past. 

At the end of the meeting, the minister stressed that, at the Government level, there was commitment to support companies, given that they help to provide solutions to certain needs within the population, but that this did not mean that they should act outside the law.

In that regard, Ofa Mbo Nchama commented that the Government was working to gather all the information on the transfers and declarations made by each company during 2021, 2022 and 2023, in order to then decide on the payment methods and deadlines regarding their debts to the Public Treasury. The member of the Government stated that the operation would be executed in a way that did not place an unbearable strain on businesses.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Equatorial Guinea: Official Web Page of the Government.

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