Economy committee chair calls $214m “loss” under gold-for-reserves a transactional cost

Eric Afful, Chairperson of Parliament’s Economy Committee, has said the reported $214 million under the Gold-for-Reserves (G4R) programme should not be classified as a loss, but rather as a transactional cost incurred by the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod).

Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsnight on Monday, December 29, Afful addressed concerns raised by the Minority in Parliament regarding the alleged mismanagement of the programme.

“Gold Board has not rendered its financials. Though there was information shared with the IMF that there is this $240 million… I’m saying with confidence that the $240 million cannot, as you speak today, be described as losses. It is a cost. It is a transactional cost to the Gold Board,” he stated.

The remarks come amid calls by the Minority for a bipartisan parliamentary investigation into the programme.

Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, MP for Ofoase Ayirebi, told journalists that a parliamentary ad-hoc committee should have the authority to subpoena all contracts, licenses, intermediaries, and related entities connected to the G4R initiative.

He also urged the Bank of Ghana and GoldBod to disclose fee structures, pricing formulas, aggregator selection criteria, and foreign exchange arrangements linked to gold purchases.

Oppong Nkrumah raised further concerns about gold sourced from forest reserves, calling for the suspension of permits in these areas and the introduction of stricter traceability measures.

The Minority insists that such an inquiry is necessary to ensure accountability, transparency, and to prevent state funds from being linked to illegal mining activities.