The Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Dr. Johnson Asiama, has announced plans for the Central Bank, in collaboration with the Gold Board and the Ministry of Finance, to convene a policy workshop to review and refine the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme (DGPP) in line with international best practices.
Speaking at the 77th Annual New Year School at the University of Ghana, Dr. Asiama said the proposed workshop will bring together experts, market practitioners, and policymakers to undertake evidence-based analysis of the programme and incorporate diverse perspectives to strengthen its long-term sustainability.
Looking ahead to 2026, the Governor emphasised that the Gold-for-Reserves (G4R) initiative must be firmly anchored within the broader government framework as a national priority, with responsibility shared across institutions to ensure sustainability.
He explained that the DGPP was introduced at a time of acute economic vulnerability, when Ghana’s foreign exchange buffers were depleted and market confidence was weak. According to him, the programme played a strategic role by leveraging the country’s natural resources to rebuild external reserves, stabilise the cedi, and create fiscal space to support economic recovery.
Dr. Asiama noted that, judged against these objectives, the DGPP has been a key pillar of Ghana’s recent macroeconomic stability. However, he acknowledged that the gains came at a significant financial cost to the Central Bank.
“It is also important to be candid that this stability came at a cost. Indeed, that was a deliberate choice taken in the national interest,” he stated.
He explained that the Bank of Ghana had to absorb the financial burden of sustaining the Gold-for-Oil (G4O) and Gold-for-Reserves (G4R) frameworks to protect the broader economy and restore confidence.
The Governor disclosed that in 2025, the Bank implemented major policy adjustments to optimise the programme, including the cancellation of the G4O scheme and further refinement of the G4R framework.
Key improvements, he said, included measures to reduce settlement risks through “payment before release” requirements, improved pricing via reduced discount agency charges, enhanced transparency through the introduction of a Gold FX option mechanism, and strengthened governance and risk management within the artisanal and small-scale mining sector.
Dr. Asiama stressed that from 2026, responsibility for the DGPP must no longer rest solely with the Bank of Ghana, but be shared across institutions to ensure the programme’s sustainability as a national priority.
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