The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has accused the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) of creating conditions that are allowing illegally mined gold to find its way into the country’s formal gold trading system.
According to the opposition party, weaknesses in GoldBod’s gold purchasing and verification processes have made it difficult to determine whether gold being purchased through licensed buyers is sourced from legitimate mining operations or illegal mining activities.
Speaking to the media, NPP National Organiser Henry Nana Boakye alleged that GoldBod’s inability to effectively trace the source of gold has contributed to the persistence of illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
“GoldBod, I can tell you now, is the cause of the environmental destruction we are seeing. They are now responsible for galamsey,” he stated.
Mr Boakye questioned the mechanisms used by GoldBod to verify the origins of gold purchased through its licensed buyers.
He argued that without a robust traceability system, gold produced through illegal mining could easily be introduced into the formal trading chain.
The NPP National Organiser said similar concerns had been raised by players in the mining sector, including the Ghana Chamber of Mines and some Members of Parliament.
“If GoldBod is not buying galamsey gold, then who is?” he questioned, calling for greater clarity on how the state-owned gold-buying institution establishes the source of the gold it purchases.
Mr Boakye also criticised what he described as repeated assurances that measures were being developed to address concerns over gold traceability.
He argued that the assurances had not sufficiently addressed questions about how GoldBod identifies and verifies the source of gold entering the formal market.
The NPP is therefore calling for greater transparency in GoldBod’s gold purchasing operations and stronger mechanisms to ensure that gold produced through illegal mining does not enter the formal trading system.
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