The Ghana Chamber of Mines has disputed claims by the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), Sammy Gyamfi, that large-scale mining companies return less than 20% of their mineral export earnings to Ghana, describing the figure as “materially misleading.”
The disagreement follows remarks made by Mr Gyamfi at a ceremony marking the sale of the Damang Gold Mine’s first gold output to the Bank of Ghana through GoldBod.
He argued that while large-scale mining firms produced nearly $10 billion worth of gold in 2025, only a small portion of the value remained in Ghana.
“But in sharp contrast to that, the large-scale mining companies in the country only sold just about 10% of their output, just about 10 tons of the almost 100 metric tons of gold they produced in 2025,” he said.
“If you add the physical gold stocks they sold to the country through the Bank of Ghana to the foreign exchange they repatriated back, you will not get more than 20%.”
He further claimed that mining agreements allow some companies to retain a significant share of export proceeds abroad.
“And the agreements they’ve signed with the Republic allows them to retain, in some cases, 100% of the proceeds of their gold sales outside Ghana. In some cases, 80% retention, 90% retention. So what comes back into the economy is very little,” he stated.
However, the Chamber of Mines rejected this interpretation, saying it only reflects transactions done directly with the Bank of Ghana and ignores other major inflows through commercial banks.
“The cited statistic is derived solely from bullion gold and foreign exchange sold directly to the Bank of Ghana,” the Chamber said.
“This approach captures only one channel of forex repatriation and excludes substantial inflows through the commercial banking system.”
The Chamber explained that mining companies bring export earnings into Ghana through both direct sales to the central bank and transactions through local commercial banks.
It said any fair assessment must include both channels.
According to the Chamber, a large portion of the funds brought in through commercial banks is used locally to pay taxes, royalties, salaries, utility bills, fuel, suppliers, and community development obligations.
Some of the foreign currency is also converted into cedis, supporting liquidity in the domestic economy.
“Based on industry data, approximately 70 per cent of mineral export proceeds from the Chamber’s producing members is returned to Ghana through a combination of the central bank and commercial banking channels,” it stated.
The Chamber also stressed the difference between total foreign exchange repatriation and net retention after external payments, insisting that gross repatriation is the proper measure for assessing the sector’s contribution.
It further called for more transparent and detailed reporting of mineral sector forex flows through both the Bank of Ghana and commercial banks to improve public understanding.
The dispute comes amid ongoing discussions about how much benefit Ghana derives from its gold resources and how to strengthen foreign exchange reserves while ensuring greater local economic gains.
