Initially companies were required to pay thirty thousand dalasis as national education levy. Two years ago the state decided to peg the national education levy to the income of a company. Consequently some newspapers paid close to D100,000 as national education levy in addition to annual corporate taxes.
Since newspapers are rendering a national service of gathering news from both government sectors, NGOs and the public at large no progressive government would shut them down by imposing unreasonable an unjustifiable taxes on them. It is therefore a welcome gesture that the national education levy is removed from the burden of the press in The Gambia. This will enable the press to invest more on quality reporting. One should therefore expect better output from the press.
