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to the second of these weights, i.e., to<sup>the assumptions concerning the degree of</sup> overloading. Even if one uses the most moderate<sup>estimates (4 ESAL per heavy truck), the</sup> ratio of the estimated marginal user costs of private<sup>cars and heavy trucks is 1:10. If one</sup> uses a higher estimate for the damaging factor<sup>of trucks, this ratio almost triples. (By</sup> contrast, in Tunisia Newbery estimated the<sup>urbanMCC to be almost six times the RDE,</sup> yielding a ratio of about 1:3.) Fuel taxces are the closest proxy for road<sup>user charges. In Ghana the tax (per gallon) on</sup> gasoline and diesel oil is almost the same. Consequently,<sup>the differential tax on the various</sup> vehicle types depends on their fuel consumption.<sup>The fuel efficiency (km. per gallon) of</sup> private cars is 4-5 times that of heavy trucks.<sup>Given the 1:10 ratio in RUC, this precludes</sup> fuel taxes from being the sole instrument of<sup>user charges and calls for supplementary</sup> taxation devices.

Although fuel prices in Ghana are much<sup>lower than in neighboring countries, there is no</sup> evidence to suggest that ex-refinery prices of<sup>gasoline and diesel oil are below world prices</sup> (although they have been so in the past, niay<sup>be so again in the future, if not constantly</sup> adjusted to changes in the rate of exchange<sup>and world prices). The major conclusion relating</sup> to transport taxation is that fuel taxes are adequate<sup>where road user charges are concerned.</sup> The taxing instrument found to be deficient<sup>is the annual licensing fee. To bridge the gap</sup> between road user costs and charges, the annual<sup>fee for heavy trucks has to be raised ten-</sup> fold. Exemptions from the licensing fee shouid<sup>be canceled, and registration rules should be</sup> abided by. Even then, charges on heavy vehicles<sup>will not cover costs unless current legal</sup> limits of axle loading are strictly enforced. A<sup>more efficient means of reducing the load-</sup> damaging effects of heavy vehicies lies in<sup>structuring the annual fees to reflect the much</sup> lower damaging impact of multiaxle vehicles<sup>compared with the high damaging 2-axle heavy</sup> vehicles.

Taxation is naturally associated with the issue<sup>of redistribution. The issue in this case is</sup> of secondary importance, given the low fuel<sup>consumption and the current low level of fuel</sup> taxes. Ghana is in the fortunate situation where<sup>oil imports constitute less than one quarter</sup> of its energy consumption. Almost three quarters<sup>of energy consumption are provided by</sup> biomass (UNDP / World Bank, 1986) and<sup>most electricity (4 percent of consumption) is</sup> generated by two hydroelectric power stations.<sup>Half of the petroleum is consumed by the</sup> transport sector; the other half by industry and<sup>the household sector. The low level of</sup> commercial energy consumption makes fuel taxation<sup>a problem of secondary importance, the</sup> reliance on woodfuel exempts a large fraction<sup>of households from these taxes, and the</sup> misallocations created by tran port taxes in other<sup>sectors of the economy are minor.</sup> A recent study of poverty in Ghana (Oti Boateng<sup>_et al.,_1990) examined the expenditures</sup> on fuel. It found that the expenditures on charcoal,<sup>wood, kerosene, gasoline and other fuel</sup> constitute 3.2 percent of total expenditures (including<sup>home production). It is almost identical</sup> for the poor and the not-poor. Charcoal and wood<sup>constitute half of this expenditure, and</sup> gasoline a minuscule fraction (0.43 percent for<sup>the non-poor and 0.005 percent for the poor).</sup> Public transport constitutes 1.6 percent, and<sup>(in contrast to developed countries) its share</sup> increases with income (it is 1.7 percent for the non-poor<sup>vs. 1.3 percent for the poor).</sup>