In a strange move, the Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Dr. Johnson Asiama, has announced the suspension of the country’s Gold-for-Oil programme due to unspecified policy and operational challenges.
This decision marks a notable shift in Ghana’s economic strategy, as the initiative was initially designed to reduce reliance on foreign exchange for fuel imports and stabilize domestic fuel prices.
The Gold-for-Oil programme was introduced under the previous administration to utilize Ghana’s gold reserves to pay for oil imports, thereby reducing the country’s dependence on foreign exchange.
However, according to Dr. Asiama, the programme has incurred financial losses, necessitating its temporary suspension.
“We have had to incur some losses on that, so we have put some suspension on the trade,” he stated in an interview with Bloomberg.
Despite the halt, Dr. Asiama expressed optimism about Ghana’s economic prospects, particularly regarding the stability of the cedi following last year’s volatility.
He assured that the central bank would uphold a prudent monetary policy to support fiscal discipline.
“We intend to maintain an appropriate monetary policy stance. Together with commitments to fiscal discipline under the administration of President John Mahama, this should help us maintain stability in the foreign exchange markets.”
The suspension of the Gold-for-Oil programme signals a reassessment of economic policies under the new Mahama administration.
-BY Daniel Bampoe
