A Consultant and former Executive Director of the Integrated Social Development Centre (ISODEC) Dr. Bishop Akolgo has proposed to the government to consider making the Bank of Ghana (BoG) the sole buyer and exporter of Ghana’s Gold.
“Government should empower the central bank as the sole buyer and exporter of Ghana’s gold so that this can be used to shore up and stabilise our local currency, the Cedi.”
Such a move, according to Dr. Akolgo, would also help reduce Illicit Financial Flows from the mining sector, increase domestic revenue mobilization and boost Ghana’s quest for development and economic transformation.
Dr akolgo made the recommendation recently while presenting a draft research report commissioned by ISODEC with support from the Global Financial Integrity ( GFI) and NORD. The study was conducted in three mining zones in Ghana including Talensi in the Upper East Region, Kenyasi in the Ahafo Region and Obuasi in the Ashanti Region.
The research was meant to interrogate the supply chain challenges in the mining sector in Ghana that adversely affect domestic resource mobilization for national development.
According to Dr. Akolgo, more gold is exported from Ghana than the official records show and this has been confirmed by both small-scale producers and buyers on the ground.
He noted that it was time for the government to totally take over the mining sector, stressing that “Gold is a strategic mineral, so we should not leave it in the hands of foreigners.
Dr Akolgo added, “Our analysis of gold exports for the period 2020 to 2022 using both open market prices and Interquartile Range shows that there are significant discrepancies between the declared values compared to the London Bullion Market Association daily average prices.
“A second analysis of gold exports for same period using the Interquartile rage method also reveals that there are significant gaps between the declared values and the proxy arm’s length price, suggesting that these are suspicious transactions requiring further investigations.”
The workshop brought together representatives from Ghana Revenue Authority,(GRA) the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Ghana Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (GHEITI) small scale miners, Community Members, civil society organizations, the media and other relevant stakeholders.
By: Mohammed Suleman/ Publicagenda.news
