Sammy Gyamfi, GoldBod CEO
The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), Sammy Gyamfi, Esq., has announced that the institution will begin full-scale operations in 2026, marking a major shift in Ghana’s gold trading and reserve accumulation framework.
Speaking in an interview with TV3 on Saturday, December 27, 2025, Mr. Gyamfi said ongoing reforms will allow GoldBod to move beyond its current role as an agent of the Bank of Ghana (BoG) and operate fully in line with the mandate established under the Ghana Gold Board Act.
“From 2026, GoldBod will take off fully,” he said, explaining that the current arrangement—under which GoldBod purchases, assays and exports gold on behalf of the central bank—was a transitional structure inherited from the now-defunct Precious Minerals Marketing Company Limited (PMMC).
He noted that GoldBod, which is barely eight months old, was legally required to assume PMMC’s assets, liabilities and existing contracts, including those under the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme launched in 2022. As a result, GoldBod has so far functioned largely as an implementing agent within a policy framework designed prior to its establishment.
“The GoldBod concept as envisioned under the Act has not fully taken off yet,” Mr. Gyamfi said, adding that 2025 has largely been dedicated to building the institutional, regulatory and operational foundations needed for independent operations.
According to him, the planned transition in 2026 will address longstanding structural and accounting challenges associated with the Gold-for-Reserves programme, particularly concerns raised by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over how programme-related costs are reflected in the Bank of Ghana’s financial statements.
Mr. Gyamfi disclosed that the IMF has acknowledged the programme’s success in meeting Ghana’s foreign reserve targets ahead of schedule, but has called for reforms to ensure that the financial burden does not rest solely on the central bank.
“When GoldBod takes off fully, some of the issues the IMF is concerned about in the books of the Bank of Ghana will become a thing of the past,” he said.
Under the proposed reforms, GoldBod is expected to exercise its full statutory mandate, including enhanced regulatory and enforcement powers to curb gold smuggling, reduce leakages and improve pricing efficiency across the gold value chain—functions that were unavailable to PMMC and constrained under the agency model.
Mr. Gyamfi emphasized that GoldBod’s mandate is strategic rather than purely commercial, with a focus on foreign exchange generation and macroeconomic stability rather than profit maximization.
He said this policy orientation will continue under the full operational model, supported by improved institutional clarity and financial reporting.
He further noted that the transition will enable a clearer separation of roles among GoldBod, the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Ghana, improving transparency in how costs and benefits from gold-backed foreign exchange inflows are accounted for at the national level.
GoldBod’s financial position remains sound, Mr. Gyamfi said, noting that the institution has recorded surpluses since its establishment and has published quarterly financial statements in line with legal requirements. External audits expected in early 2026 will further validate its financial performance ahead of the full operational rollout.
As Ghana prepares for the next phase of its gold-backed economic strategy, Mr. Gyamfi said the 2026 reforms mark a shift from interim arrangements to a permanent, institutionalised framework that strengthens national control over the gold sector while safeguarding macroeconomic stability.
