A new economic study on the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) suggests the institution has the potential to significantly reshape Ghana’s economy—if it is run with discipline, transparency and a clearly defined mandate.
Rather than treating GoldBod as just another state-owned gold trader, the paper frames it as a strategic coordination body designed to fix long-standing weaknesses in the gold sector. These include fragmented gold buying, weak regulation of artisanal and small-scale mining, capital flight, and chronic foreign exchange leakages that have drained the wider economy.
The study was authored by Prof. Festus Ebo Turkson and Peter Junior Dotse of the University of Ghana’s Department of Economics, alongside Prof. Agyapomaa Gyeke-Dako of the Department of Finance at the University of Ghana Business School.
According to the authors, Ghana’s position as Africa’s leading gold producer has not delivered the macroeconomic gains one would expect. A major reason, they argue, is that foreign exchange earnings from gold have not been properly captured or consistently retained within the formal financial system. GoldBod’s centralised export framework is seen as a direct response to this problem, ensuring that gold revenues pass through regulated channels.
The paper also links GoldBod’s operations to broader development outcomes. More stable foreign exchange inflows, it notes, could help ease inflationary pressures, improve the country’s ability to finance imports, and give businesses greater certainty when dealing in foreign currency. Over time, these gains could support job creation, industrial growth and stronger investor confidence.
In the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector, the study describes GoldBod as a governance innovation that blends inclusion with control. By bringing small-scale miners into a transparent national purchasing system, the institution could curb criminal activity, strengthen environmental oversight and improve labour standards across the sector.
That said, the authors are clear that success is not guaranteed. They warn that GoldBod will only deliver on its promise if it operates with real institutional independence, strong compliance mechanisms and a clear line between political oversight and day-to-day management.
The study concludes that, if these safeguards are firmly in place, GoldBod could become a template for other resource-rich African countries looking to turn natural wealth into lasting macroeconomic stability rather than recurring boom-and-bust cycles.