Seth Emmanuel Terkper is a Ghanaian chartered accountant and politician who served as the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning of Ghana from 2013 to 2017 under the John Mahama Government.^[1][2]

Seth Terkper was born in Somanya in the Eastern Region of Ghana, where he started his elementary school education in the Presby cluster of schools.

He obtained his first degree in B.Comm from the UCC in Ghana. He is also a Chartered Accountant who holds an MPA degree from the Kennedy School, Harvard University.^[3]

Between July 1999 and February 2009, Terkper held various positions (last as Senior Economist) in the Fiscal Affairs Dept. (FAD) of the IMF in Washington, DC.^[4]

He participated in, and led, several technical assistance (TA) missions to member-states to improve the organization, process and legislation for revenue institutions. In so doing, he worked with colleagues in the Tax Policy [TP] and other Divisions in FAD; the African and Legal departments; the Caribbean Technical Assistance Centre [CARTAC]; and other IMF units to achieve critical TA goals. As a chartered accountant and public administrator, he follows fiscal, accounting, and other economic trends closely.^[5]

Before joining the IMF, Terkper worked in staff and management positions—including National VAT Coordinator and Deputy Commissioner—in the National Revenue Secretariat MOFEP and revenue agencies in Ghana. He played a key role in the introduction of the Value Added Tax (VAT) in Ghana.

Terkper published a book on VAT (VAT Handbook by Thompson-Reuters) in 2011 and continues to maintain a keen interest in research, publications, reviews and teaching.^[10][11]

• List of Mahama government ministers

• Seth Terkper on Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning website