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The Majority in Parliament has dismissed claims by the Minority caucus that the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) incurred a $214 million loss under the Gold-for-Reserves programme, describing the allegations as false and politically motivated.
Eric Afful, Chairman of Parliament’s Economy and Development Committee and Amenfi West MP, said the reported figure is not a loss but a routine transactional cost, and accused the Minority of deliberately attempting to undermine the economic gains achieved under the Mahama administration.
“Look at the stability of the cedi now. Look at inflation and the cedi-dollar relationship. These indicators show that we are achieving results. The NPP is intentionally making this news to render our economic gains useless, but Ghanaians know what is happening,” Afful said.
Afful highlighted that Ghana’s economy has received international recognition for its progress. “I was at the IMF and World Bank annual meetings. Ghana was applauded. The Governor of the Bank of Ghana had the chance to show the world how, within seven to eight months, we have chalked up these successes. This is serious propaganda,” he said.
The committee chairman also noted that statutory procedures are being followed regarding financial accountability. “It is statutory that GoldBod will render accounts to Parliament, and that the Bank of Ghana will present its accounts before March. All these reports will be reviewed by Parliament. The Minority is jumping the gun,” he said.
Afful insisted that the $214 million figure cited by the Minority is misleading. “What they are claiming as a debt incurred by GoldBod is not true. It is a cost. It is a cost, it is not a loss,” he emphasised.
The Minority in Parliament, led by Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has called for a bipartisan parliamentary inquiry into the reported losses, urging the creation of an ad-hoc committee with powers to subpoena contracts, licenses, intermediaries, and related entities.
They have demanded full disclosure of fee structures, pricing formulas, aggregator selection criteria, and foreign exchange arrangements.
Oppong Nkrumah also proposed suspending permits in forest reserves and enforcing strict traceability measures, citing concerns that state funds could be used to purchase gold from illegal mining activities. He added that any proven negligence or corruption must result in prosecution and full recovery of funds.
The call by the Minority follows concerns raised by the International Monetary Fund over the reported losses, which the IMF described as a potential risk to Ghana’s macroeconomic stability. The IMF attributed the losses to transactions involving artisanal and small-scale mining dore gold and referenced alleged GoldBod off-taker fees.
GoldBod, however, has consistently denied incurring any losses, describing the IMF claims as inaccurate. CEO Sammy Gyamfi previously stated that GoldBod expects an income surplus of no less than 600 million cedis for 2025 and clarified that it does not charge off-taker fees. He explained that GoldBod’s role is limited to purchasing, assaying, and exporting gold on behalf of the Bank of Ghana, while trading agreements are under the central bank’s mandate.
Gyamfi also highlighted GoldBod’s contribution of over 10 billion dollars in foreign exchange in 2025 through purchases of more than 100 tonnes of artisanal and small-scale mining gold, and its support in buying output from large-scale mining companies, boosting Ghana’s foreign reserves and strengthening the cedi.
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Minority demands bipartisan parliamentary inquiry into BoG-GoldBod $214m loss
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