The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) recorded a sharp rise in revenue in 2025 after blocking systemic leakages, tightening controls at ports and intensifying public education, its Chief Executive Officer, Julius Neequaye Kotey, has said.
Speaking in an interview on Hot Issues, Mr Kotey disclosed that although the DVLA was given a revenue target of about GHS 500 million last year, it generated close to GHS 900 million, far exceeding expectations. He said the authority’s total cost of operations for the year stood at approximately GHS 388 million, describing the organisation as profitable but stressing that revenue growth was not the sole objective.
“Blocking loopholes is a clear reason,” he said, adding that many reforms were driven by safety considerations rather than direct financial returns. Mr Kotey cited long-standing abuses at the ports, including the reuse of temporary dealer plates for multiple vehicles, as examples of practices that had been curtailed.
Addressing concerns about affordability, the DVLA boss said acquiring a driver’s licence through approved channels does not cost “thousands of cedis,” insisting that inflated prices are largely driven by middlemen, locally known as “goro boys.” He noted that while the official cost of a personalised number plate is about GHS 8,000, some intermediaries charge as much as GHS 15,000.
Mr Kotey said the DVLA has reduced the activities of these intermediaries through system reforms, public engagement and innovation rather than force. “We are using scientific methods,” he said, adding that dialogue had helped minimise their influence, though not eliminate it entirely.
On licence backlogs, Mr Kotey revealed that the authority inherited a backlog of about 444,000 unprinted licences, representing roughly 18 months of delays. He said the DVLA adopted a 24-hour shift system to clear the backlog, but new public financial management controls required additional approvals before printing could resume.
According to him, printing has now restarted, with licences issued up to September 2025 already completed. He expressed confidence that by the end of next month, the DVLA would catch up to January 2026 records.
The authority is also preparing to introduce instant card printing for existing licence holders, while maintaining a mandatory three-month training period for first-time applicants in line with international standards.