Africa-Press – Ghana. The Minister of Finance says plans are underway to establish a “Gold Village”, a continental hub for gold jewellery design, manufacturing, and export, to position Ghana as Africa’s centre for high-value gold craftsmanship.
Dr Ato Forson said the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) was working closely with the Bank of Ghana and was developing partnerships with local refineries to expand domestic refining capacity and anchor the local gold value chain.
Dr Forson made this know when he presented the 2026 Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the government to Parliament in Accra.
The Budget was on the theme: “Resetting for Growth, Jobs and Economic Transformation.”
He said since its establishment, the Board, had redefined Ghana’s gold value chain through bold structural and regulatory reforms that were reshaping the small-scale and large-scale mining sectors.
He said the GoldBod had implemented sweeping licensing reforms to promote responsible sourcing, strengthened regulatory oversight across the gold supply chain, and introduced a transparent, competitive pricing framework for licensed miners and gold buyers.
“It has also deployed an efficient gold aggregation system to mobilise gold from all mining regions and intensified the fight against illegal trading and smuggling through a dedicated Task Force, supported by a whistleblower reward scheme,” he added.
He said the reforms, combined with the removal of the 1.5 per cent withholding tax on unprocessed small-scale gold in the 2025 Budget, had produced unprecedented results.
Between January and October 2025, small-scale gold exports surged to a record 81.7 tonnes, valued at approximately US$8.1 billion, the highest in Ghana’s history.
For the same period, large-scale gold exports amounted to 74.1 tonnes, with an estimated value of US$6.6 billion.
The Minister said for the first time, small-scale gold exports had exceeded large-scale production in both volume and value, underscoring the effectiveness of the policy and regulatory reforms.
He said to deepen the local gold economy, the GoldBod had partnered the Bank of Ghana to support reserve accumulation.
“So far, 137.7 kilograms of gold from large-scale producers have been purchased and added to Ghana’s official reserves,” he said.
These inflows have bolstered foreign exchange reserves, improved the balance of payments, and provided critical stability for the Ghana cedi,directly supporting the broader economic reset agenda.
Dr Forson said, these achievements affirmed the GoldBod’s strategic importance to Ghana’s economic transformation.
He said the Board remained committed to responsible sourcing, environmental sustainability, and full supply-chain traceability.
The Minister said beginning 2026, it would roll out a comprehensive Gold Traceability System, ensuring every gram of gold purchased can be traced to its verified, licensed, and environmentally compliant origin.
He said in line with the government’s industrialisation and value-addition drive, the GoldBod had been tasked to spearhead Ghana’s transition from the export of raw gold to refined gold.
He said the government remained resolute in supporting the GoldBod’s efforts through targeted incentives, investor partnerships, and a favourable business environment to maximise domestic value addition in the 2026 fiscal year and beyond.
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