President John Mahama has credited the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) as the main driver behind Ghana’s significant boost in international reserves, now standing at US$13.8 billion—enough to cover 5.7 months of imports.
Addressing Parliament during his 2026 State of the Nation Address, the President highlighted that the establishment of GoldBod has led to a surge in gold exports, with 103 tonnes exported in just 10 months, generating over US$10 billion in foreign exchange inflows.
“The formalisation of gold exports has reduced smuggling and increased recorded exports in the Artisanal Small-scale Mining sector from 66.3 tonnes by the end of 2024,” he said.
President Mahama explained that the increase in reserves is a key step in strengthening Ghana’s economic stability, asserting sovereignty over its natural resources, and preparing for global uncertainties.
“Mr. Speaker, our reserves currently stand at US$13.8 billion, up from US$8.9 billion by the end of 2024. This covers 5.7 months of import needs. A key driver of this development has been the establishment of the Ghana Gold Board,” he stated.
He added that with global gold prices expected to rise over the next three years, Ghana must build stronger reserve buffers to stabilise the cedi, reduce inflation, boost investor confidence, and support household incomes.
“When the cedi stabilises, imported inflation falls, businesses can plan better, and household income will increase. As global uncertainties grow, it is necessary to reduce our country’s exposure to external shocks, break the cycle of economic downturns, and safeguard microeconomic stability,” the President emphasised.
President Mahama also endorsed Finance Minister Dr. Ken Ofori-Atta’s introduction of the Ghana Accelerated National Reserve Accumulation (GANRA) policy, aimed at leveraging Ghana’s gold to strengthen foreign exchange reserves and promote economic stability.
Dr. Ofori-Atta described the initiative as historic, representing a structured, gold-backed, and reform-driven accumulation framework. “Gold, as a strategic anchor, is central to this policy. It is a deliberate gold-backed reserve accumulation strategy, anchored on the Ghana Gold Board Act, 2025 (Act 1140), which mandates GoldBod to generate foreign exchange and support reserve accumulation at the Bank of Ghana,” he explained.
To operationalise the policy, the Finance Minister revealed that the government has set a weekly gold purchase target of approximately 3.02 tonnes—comprising at least 2.45 tonnes from the Artisanal Small-scale Mining (ASM) sector and a minimum of 0.57 tonnes from the Large-Scale Mining sector.
