Ghana is shaking up its gold industry with a bold move: all foreign players in the local gold trading market must pack up and leave by April 30.
In a statement released Monday, the newly established GoldBod short for the Ghana Gold Board announced that it will now be the sole entity allowed to buy, sell, assay, and export artisanal and small-scale gold.
The sweeping reform is part of the government’s aggressive bid to tighten control over gold flows, maximize national earnings, and stamp out rampant smuggling in Africa’s top gold-producing nation.
The decision marks a sharp pivot from the previous model, where both Ghanaian and foreign firms with export licenses could freely purchase and ship gold from small-scale miners.
Those licenses are now null and void under the new regime.
While foreign entities are no longer welcome in the local trading space, the door isn’t entirely closed.
They can still apply to buy gold directly from GoldBod—effectively removing them from the grassroots level of the supply chain.
Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson first teased the plan in January, touting GoldBod as a strategic vehicle to help Ghana pocket more from its gold wealth while shoring up the cedi.
The nation saw a 53.2% jump in gold exports last year, reaching $11.64 billion—with nearly $5 billion of that coming from licensed small-scale operations.
The timing couldn’t be more critical: gold prices just crossed the $3,200-per-ounce threshold for the first time ever, as global tensions and the U.S.-China trade war send investors flocking to safe-haven assets.
Ghana is clearly betting big on its golden future and this time, it’s playing by its own rules.
–Reuters
