A development analyst ,political commentator,and Founding President of The UP Tradition Institute,Dr Razak Kojo Opoku, has called for a comprehensive assessment of the operations of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), arguing that the reported $1.7 billion loss associated with gold trading should not be interpreted as a direct financial loss to the state.
According to Dr Razak Kojo Opoku, the reported figure, cited in an International Monetary Fund (IMF) report, represents largely policy-related accounting costs, otherwise described as “quasi-fiscal costs”, rather than money directly lost from government coffers.
He said the distinction was important in assessing whether GoldBod had achieved the objectives for which it was established.
Dr Opoku explained that the specific objectives of GoldBod included increasing Ghana’s foreign exchange reserves, contributing to the stability of the cedi and curbing the smuggling of gold.
He maintained that the reported $1.7 billion should, therefore, be examined within the broader context of the benefits and costs associated with the government’s gold trading policy.
Dr Razak Kojo Opoku, in an assessment of the gold trading regime, said the IMF had attributed the reported losses to policy-related accounting costs, trading shortfalls and transaction-related costs.
He cited the IMF report as explaining that the losses accrued on gold trades were a combination of service and assay fees paid to GoldBod, discounts on gold sold to off-takers and, importantly, exchange-rate losses arising from the difference between the foreign exchange bureau rate used to purchase gold and the cedi reference rate used by the Bank of Ghana for accounting purposes.
He consequently argued that it would be unfair to place the entire $1.7 billion figure solely at the door of GoldBod when the Bank of Ghana was also involved in the accounting and foreign exchange arrangements surrounding the transactions.
“Therefore, it is unfair to solely blame GoldBod for the $1.7 billion losses when the Bank of Ghana is clearly in the picture,” he said.
Understanding the ‘quasi-fiscal cost’
Dr Opoku said the concept of policy-related accounting cost could better be understood by comparing it with other government interventions designed to achieve broader economic or social objectives.
He cited the government’s decision to spend about GH¢207 million on fertiliser subsidies, representing a 50 per cent price reduction for farmers, as one example.
He also referred to the banking and financial sector clean-up, which he said cost the government about GH¢25 billion, but was undertaken to protect depositors’ funds and safeguard the financial system.
Another example, he said, was the government’s decision to reduce the price of petroleum products by GH¢2 per litre at the pumps to cushion consumers.
According to him, such interventions should not be assessed solely on the expenditure involved but also on the policy objectives and benefits they are intended to achieve.
GoldBod and foreign exchange reserves
On whether GoldBod had achieved its first objective of increasing Ghana’s foreign exchange reserves, Dr Opoku answered in the affirmative, although he acknowledged that there was still room for improvement.
He said GoldBod had contributed significantly to the growth of Ghana’s foreign exchange reserves, with the estimated reserves reaching about $10 billion.
He, however, raised an important policy question over whether the country could have achieved the same objective at a lower cost.
“Is it prudent strategy to lose $1.7 billion to attract a revenue of $10 billion?” he asked.
He further challenged policymakers and economic experts to determine whether there was an alternative gold trading policy capable of raising about $10 billion for Ghana’s reserves without incurring the reported policy-related accounting cost.
Cedi stability
Dr Opoku also credited the GoldBod initiative with contributing to relative stability of the cedi against the United States dollar and other major international currencies.
He said, so far, the cedi had demonstrated relative stability since the introduction of the GoldBod initiatives.
He nevertheless stressed that Ghana could not be satisfied with relative stability alone.
According to him, the ultimate objective should be to build an economy in which the cedi performs significantly better against major trading currencies.
He said Ghanaians would like to see a situation where the exchange rate moves towards “$1 to GH¢5”, while emphasising that stronger policy interventions would be required to achieve sustained currency strength.
Gold smuggling remains a major concern
On the fight against gold smuggling, Dr Opoku said GoldBod had made progress but much more needed to be done to completely eradicate the practice.
He referred to an IMF estimate that Ghana lost about $11.4 billion through gold smuggling between 2019 and 2024.
He also pointed to a discrepancy exceeding $4 billion between gold exports reported by Ghana and gold imports recorded by the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Against that background, Dr Opoku questioned whether the country should be more concerned about the reported $1.7 billion policy-related accounting cost associated with gold trading or the estimated $11.4 billion lost through gold smuggling over the period.
He argued that the comparison should inform the national conversation about the future of Ghana’s gold trading policy.
Galamsey and GoldBod operations
Dr Opoku further called for greater scrutiny of the relationship between GoldBod’s operations and illegal small-scale mining, popularly known as galamsey.
He said there was a need for GoldBod to clearly demonstrate the measures it had put in place to prevent the purchase of gold from individuals and companies involved in illegal mining activities.
He posed a number of questions about the issue, including what mechanisms GoldBod had established to identify and exclude gold sourced from illegal mining operations.
He also questioned whether GoldBod’s operations were contributing in any significant way to the rising incidence of galamsey and demanded evidence of the extent to which the institution had reduced gold smuggling, expressed in monetary terms.
Lessons from Gold-for-Oil programme
Dr Opoku also drew comparisons between GoldBod’s current operations and the previous Gold-for-Oil (G4O) programme.
He said the G4O initiative, introduced with the objectives of reducing pressure on Ghana’s foreign exchange reserves and stabilising domestic fuel prices, was terminated in March 2025.
According to him, the Bank of Ghana reported that the programme incurred financial losses of about GH¢2.43 billion.
He further stated that the combined net loss on gold trading under the Gold-for-Reserves (G4R) and Gold-for-Oil programmes in 2024 was estimated at about GH¢5.66 billion, or approximately GH¢5.7 billion.
He said the experience raised questions about whether those programmes achieved their intended objectives despite the financial costs involved.
Which policy should Ghana pursue?
Dr Opoku said the debate over Ghana’s gold trading policy should move beyond political blame and focus on evidence, sustainability and value for money.
He said the country needed to establish whether the benefits derived from GoldBod’s operations justified the policy-related costs associated with the programme.
He also called for a comparative assessment of GoldBod, Gold-for-Reserves and Gold-for-Oil to determine which approach offered Ghana the best opportunity to strengthen its foreign exchange reserves, stabilise the cedi, reduce fuel price pressures and tackle gold smuggling.
“Both Gold-for-Oil and Gold-for-Reserves incurred financial losses of GH¢5.7 billion, but the question is whether the policies were able to achieve their intended purposes of currency stability, fuel price stabilisation and prevention or reduction of gold smuggling,” he said.
‘Don’t lose sight of bigger picture’
Dr Opoku concluded that Ghana’s discussion of the $1.7 billion figure should be guided by a proper understanding of the nature of the reported cost.
He maintained that the $1.7 billion cited by the IMF as a policy-related accounting cost should not automatically be equated with a direct cash loss to the state.
At the same time, he said the government and GoldBod must remain accountable and continuously review the trading model to ensure that Ghana derives maximum value from its gold resources.
He argued that the estimated $11.4 billion lost through gold smuggling between 2019 and 2024 represented a far more serious concern because it reflected revenue and foreign exchange that could have entered the formal economy.
Dr Opoku therefore urged policymakers to determine whether Ghana should return to the Gold-for-Oil or Gold-for-Reserves models or maintain and improve the GoldBod system.
He said the critical issue was not simply whether a particular gold policy had incurred a cost, but whether the policy was delivering measurable economic benefits to the country and whether a more efficient model could achieve the same objectives at a lower cost.
