BY Daniel Bampoe
At the CNVERGE ’25 conference in London, the Bank of Ghana outlined how a bold gold-based economic strategy — spearheaded by initiatives like the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme (DGPP), Gold-for-Oil (G4O), and the Ghana Gold Coin — has been pivotal in strengthening the country’s reserves, stabilising the cedi, and restoring investor confidence.
The initiatives were the brainchild of the previous administration.
Representing the central bank, Dr. Zakari Mumuni, First Deputy Governor described the policy framework as “solutions born out of adversity,” noting that Ghana’s reliance on its gold resources emerged from one of the most challenging periods in the nation’s recent economic history.
The Gold Strategy: A Response to Crisis
By late 2022, Ghana faced a sharp depreciation of the cedi, rising fuel costs, and foreign exchange shortages.
In response, the government and Bank of Ghana rolled out the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme, enabling the central bank to acquire gold locally with cedis instead of scarce US dollars.
This was complemented by the Gold-for-Oil initiative, under which Ghana used gold to directly pay for imported petroleum products — reducing demand for foreign currency and easing exchange rate pressures.
Bawumia’s Reflections on Policy Impact
The Gold for Oil initiative was introduced by the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia administration before leaving power in 2025.
Speaking separately during his Thank You Tour in the UK, former Vice President and NPP 2024 flagbearer Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia underscored how critical the gold strategy had been in averting an economic collapse.
“If we had not instituted the gold purchase programme as well as the gold-for-oil programme, our economy would have collapsed,” Dr. Bawumia told the Young Executive Forum in London.
“Where would we have gotten $5 billion just to support the economy? You wouldn’t have gotten it.”
He explained that gold was strategically chosen because it did not require the export process to generate foreign exchange.
“With cocoa, timber, or oil, you need to export to earn forex. But gold is here — you just dig it or buy it with cedis,” he said.
Boosting Ghana’s Gold Reserves
Between 2022 and 2024, the Bank of Ghana purchased gold worth $5 billion, raising the country’s gold reserves from 8.7 tons — a figure unchanged for 65 years after independence — to 30 tons.
Dr. Bawumia described this as a “big backing for the currency” and a major reason the cedi has held firm in recent months.
Political and Economic Context
While the Bank of Ghana presentation at CNVERGE ’25 focused on the policy’s structural benefits, Dr. Bawumia used the opportunity to contrast the NPP’s record with that of the current NDC administration, claiming that gold reserves have not grown since the change of government.
He dismissed suggestions that the cedi’s recent appreciation was due to NDC policy, attributing it instead to factors such as the groundwork laid by the gold strategy, global dollar weakness, and reduced domestic government spending.
Resilience Through Commodities
For the Bank of Ghana, the gold-based interventions are now seen as a blueprint for commodity-backed stability in emerging economies. “Ghana’s gold strategy is a testament to resilience,”
Dr. Mumuni told the London audience. “By harnessing our own resources, we not only safeguarded our reserves but built a currency buffer that will serve us for years to come.”
