In a bold step toward reengineering Ghana’s gold economy, Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson has officially inaugurated the governing board of the newly-established Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), with a resounding call for a break from the past and a push toward a structured, efficient and accountable gold trading regime.

The ceremony marked a culmination of efforts that began in January 2025 with the inauguration of a Technical Committee mandated to draft the legal and operational frameworks for GoldBod.

The committee’s work culminated in the swift passage and presidential assent of the GoldBod Act, laying the foundation for what government describes as a transformative body for economic revitalization.

Representing President John Dramani Mahama, Ato Forson congratulated the new board members and emphasized GoldBod’s strategic role in stabilizing the national currency and maximizing the country’s earnings from its leading export commodity — gold.

“Ghana has historically derived minimal benefits from gold, mostly through royalties and taxes, while environmental degradation and unregulated trade soared,” Dr. Forson stated.

“The GoldBod is a flagship initiative to change that trajectory,” he underscored.

New Era for Ghana’s Gold Trade

The Finance Minister described the GoldBod as a specialized agency tasked with overseeing the structured purchase, assay, licensing, and marketing of gold — especially from the small-scale sector — a space previously marred by fragmentation, chaos, and smuggling.

He noted that, until now, the Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC), the Bank of Ghana, the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF), and numerous private individuals and foreign entities operated independently in the gold trade space.

This uncoordinated system, he said, deprived Ghana of critical foreign exchange and created loopholes that facilitated smuggling.

“All of that belongs to the past,” Dr. Forson declared, “because GoldBod now holds the exclusive mandate to buy, assay, and license gold trade from Ghana’s small-scale mining sector.”

Stabilizing the Cedi

The Finance Minister credited the activities of the new GoldBod with playing a key role in the recent appreciation of the Ghana cedi, which has recorded a 16.7% gain against the US dollar year-to-date — a dramatic turnaround from a 13.4% depreciation during the same period in 2024.

He attributed this rally to a blend of tightened monetary and fiscal policies, increased foreign exchange inflows from gold, cocoa, and remittances, and a softening of the US dollar.

“The GoldBod is already contributing to gold reserve accumulation, which has bolstered our forex reserves and reinforced the strength of our currency,” he added.

Board Composition

The governing board, appointed by President Mahama in consultation with the Council of State, comprises a cross-section of experts, policymakers, and industry representatives.

Kojo Fynn chairs the board, with Samuel Gyamfi, Chief Executive Officer also serving on the board.
Other members include Lands and Natural Resources Minister, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, deputy Finance Minister, Thomas Nyarko Ampem, Dr. Johnson Pandit Asiama, Governor, Bank of Ghana, Nelson Ahedor from the Minerals Commission, as well as representatives from large- and small-scale miners, gold service providers, and civil society.

Among the notable presidential nominees with specialized knowledge are Dr. Abdul-Baasit Aziz-Bamba, Marietta Agyeiwaa Brew, Nana Ama Amissah III, and Shaibu Mahama, MP.

Ato Forson urged the newly-constituted board to work with urgency and integrity to support President Mahama’s broader vision of resetting the Ghanaian economy. “Let us ensure that the GoldBod changes how both the Ghana cedi and Ghana’s foreign exchange accumulation behave in the future,” he indicated.