Ghana’s new Gold Board could inject up to $250 million into the economy every week, according to Sammy Gyamfi, Acting Managing Director of the Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC).

In an interview with  Accra-based Joy FM on Thursday, March 20 2025, Mr Gyamfi revealed that the Finance Ministry has committed to providing approximately GH?4 billion weekly to purchase three tonnes of gold from small-scale miners.

“If we are able to buy these three tonnes, it means that every week, the Gold Board will be able to bring into the country a minimum of $250 million. Imagine what that would do for our economy,” he said.

The initiative is part of government efforts to stabilise the national currency and boost foreign exchange reserves.

According to Mr Gyamfi, the Gold Board will ensure that 100% of foreign exchange earnings from gold exports return to Ghana within three to four days, rather than the current 30-day window, which many traders fail to honour.

He described the existing system as chaotic, with multiple agencies, including the Bank of Ghana, the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF), and private exporters mostly foreign-owned competing in the market.

“What we have currently is a chaotic system, and that is what fuels the smuggling,” he said, adding that Ghana exported $11.5 billion worth of gold in 2024, but a significant portion of the foreign exchange earnings never returned to the country.

Under the new system, the Gold Board will be the sole exporter of gold from small-scale mining operations. Licensed Ghanaian agents will buy directly from miners using funds advanced by the Gold Board.

“No foreigner and I repeat, no foreigner, whether Indian or Chinese will, after the Gold Board begins operations, have the right to buy gold from a miner,” Mr Gyamfi declared.

He added that the 61 current export licence holders, most of whom are foreign nationals, would no longer be permitted to export directly.

He also disclosed that the Gold Board would push for value addition to Ghana’s gold exports, which are currently shipped primarily as dore bars without refinement.

“It is sad that as a country that was once known as the Gold Coast and is currently the leading gold exporter in Africa, we can’t sell gold from small-scale mining to the LBMA (London Bullion Market Association). We only sell to India and Dubai at discounts,” he said.

The Gold Board Bill, currently before Parliament, will establish a regulatory structure with stricter enforcement powers, including inspectors with the authority to seize smuggled gold and conduct searches.

Meanwhile, the government has already scrapped the 1.5% withholding tax on gold exports, a move President Mahama’s administration believes will make the new system more competitive against smugglers.

Industry analysts believe the Gold Board could reshape Ghana’s gold trade and strengthen the cedi while reducing reliance on foreign imports.