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The acting Managing Director of the state-owned Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC), Sammy Gyamfi Esq., has disclosed that Goldbod will enhance efficiency and transparency in Ghana’s gold trade while ensuring the integration of small-scale miners into the formal economy.
He believes this will generate sufficient foreign exchange from gold trade and help stabilize the Ghanaian cedi.
The government established the GOLDBOD as a strategic initiative to revitalize Ghana’s gold industry, enhance foreign exchange inflows, and formalize the small-scale mining sector.
This move is part of broader efforts to bring efficiency and transparency to Ghana’s gold trade while ensuring that small-scale miners are integrated into the formal economy, thereby curbing illegal mining and promoting sustainable practices.
According to Mr. Sammy Gyamfi Esq., the previous unstructured and unregulated system significantly deprived the nation of vital foreign exchange earnings. With over 70 gold exporters licensed by the Ministry of Land and Natural Resources, many have been unable to compete with the Bank of Ghana and PMMC in gold purchases. He said that situation has led to an increase in gold smuggling, as dealers seek alternative ways to sell their gold.
“The objective is that that unstructured unregulated system led to a situation where number one, we were not getting the forex we are supposed to get as a nation from the gold we export from Ghana, so you have these exporters, over 70 of them, licensed by the Ministry of Land and Natural Resources.
“These guys have paid money for the alliances. They are in the market and you have PMMC buying gold, Bank of Ghana buying gold, these guys cannot compete with Bank of Ghana, so you are compelling them either to fold up or to smuggle.
“If the person wants to export through the legal means, he loses out completely, so most of these people, especially the foreigners, not only the foreigners, there are Ghanaians who are part of that, but especially the foreigners, they buy to smuggle.” He said.
He further explained that the depreciation of the Ghanaian cedi is largely due to gold dealers smuggling gold out of the country. He stated, He said “When they smuggle, the state is deprived or denied of the dollars, the forex, so when you see the cedi depreciating at an alarming rate, today the Bank of Ghana rate is 15.5, in the black market, we need about 16 cedis to get a dollar. Why? It’s because those who need dollars for business cannot get the dollars. Those who need dollars to import goods cannot get the dollars.
“About 90 % of the things on the market is imported, so when there is a shortage of dollars, the exchange rate keeps going up and prices keeps going up and it’s Ghanaians who will suffer, and so President Mahama is saying we need to address cost of living.”
The acting Managing Director of Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC), said with Goldbod taking full control of licensing and gold exports, government will curb illegal gold trading, which will boost foreign reserves, and ultimately create a more stable economic environment for Ghanaians.
“One of the most important things to tackle if you want to bring down cost of living is the exchange rate. You need a stable Ghana cedi, and if we can get a stable Ghana cedi, then we need a lot of forex inflows to support the cedi.
“How do you get a Forex? we have gold. So why are we allowing anybody, every Tom, and Harry to buy the gold, majority of them smuggling the gold. Have one entity, resource the entity to license agents, buy the gold through these agents and be the sole exporter of the gold, so under the gold board, no one can export gold except the gold board, and once we are the one exporting, all the dollars will come back.” He stated.
Source: Elvisanokyenews.net
