A Professor at the University of Ghana Business School, Godfred Bokpin, has said that the losses incurred by the Bank of Ghana is a sad situation for the country.
He makes the point that there are serious challenges in the gold sector.
“The way Goldbod and BoG have responded to this issue actually marks the real challenge in the sector in how the goldbod and the pricing regime are done. For several decades after independence, we are incapable as a country of doing responsible mining because, largely, the artisanal small-scale miners are incapable of doing responsible small-scale mining, which is what the data is telling us.
“In addition to that, we are saying that in 2025, when Ghana has decided that now we want to buy the gold and export, that one too we cannot even break even, from that point. That is very sad for us as a country,” he said.
Also, an Economist, Dr. Patrick Asuming, said the issues flagged by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) regarding the financial risks associated with the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme(DGPP) are legitimate concerns that should be addressed.
He indicated that the Goldbod and the Bank of Ghana should continuously assure us that the domestic gold purchase programme is not contributing to the destruction of our environment.
“I think it is a legitimate concern raised by the IMF,” he also said on the Key Points on TV3 Saturday, December 27.
He further accused the Bank of Ghana of engaging in speculation in its response to the reports on the losses that it incurred. He made the point that the BoG’s response does not dispute any fact. “Your response itself is also speculative; the BoG statement did not dispute the claim,” he said.
The Bank of Ghana had said that reports that it made losses due to GoldBod operations are speculative. The IMF had flagged the reported losses as a potential downside risk to Ghana’s broader macroeconomic stabilisation efforts, attributing them to transactions involving artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) dore gold, as well as what it described as “GoldBod off-taker fees”.
While some structural reforms have faced delays due to their complexity, the report confirms that the macroeconomic environment has improved markedly, it said.
The central bank added that real GDP growth has exceeded expectations, inflation has declined faster than projected into the Bank of Ghana’s target range, and international reserves are expanding steadily.
Tentative data from Bank of Ghana as of mid-December 2025 suggest that international reserves could exceed US$13 billion by end-2025, contributing to rising confidence in the economy, it firther said.
“Although the IMF review flagged financial risks associated with the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme(DGPP), it is important, to place these concerns within the broader context of the programme’s significant macroeconomic contribution. The DGPP is a policy tool that has helped shore up Ghana’s international reserves, supported currency stability, and enabled access to large volumes of foreign exchange without incurring new debt. The operational role of GOLDBOD as an aggregator has been important in channelling gold-based inflows from the small-scale mining sector into the official market. This collaborative structure between the Bank and GOLDBOD has ensured that the DGPP remains anchored in public policy objectives.
“The new foreign exchange operations framework introduced by the Bank of Ghana was also highlighted in the IMF report as a critical reform. Designed in line with global best practices, the framework clarifies intervention triggers, separates reserve accumulation from market intermediation, and enhances transparency, all aimed at deepening confidence in FX markets. The functioning of this framework is closely tied to the stability and efficiency of GOLDBOD’s operations, reinforcing the need for continued oversight and operational discipline,” the BoG said.
Recognising both the macroeconomic benefits and fiscal costs of the DGPP, it added, the Board of the Bank of Ghana recently approved reforms to improve pricing and operational efficiency in the downstream segment of the programme.
“These reforms will be rolled out beginning January 2026, in line with budgetary provisions made in the 2026 national budget to fully resource GOLDBOD, ensuring its sustainability as it evolves. Priorities will include reducing intermediation fees, improving cost-efficiency, and achieving competitive, yet economically sound buying prices, with benefits for both the sector and broader economy.
“Finally, the Bank of Ghana is currently undergoing its annual external audit. As such, any figures reported in relation to losses from gold operations in 2025 remain speculative. The Bank’s audited financial statements, including all relevant disclosures will be published next year in accordance with statutory requirements,” the BoG said in a statement.
