The former Finance Minister, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, has questioned the sincerity of data provided by the Bank of Ghana to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), particularly regarding a reported GH¢3.8 billion loss recorded in 2024 under the Gold-for-Reserves programme.
Dr. Adam highlighted the absence of documentation supporting the reported loss during a parliamentary hearing, noting that it was neither reflected in the Bank’s published financial statements nor included in reports submitted to the IMF. This, he said, raises concerns about possible misreporting.
As tensions rise, the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Johnson Asiama, has called for a review of the programme, urging the Ministry of Finance to consider alternative financing structures to ease the financial burden on the central bank. The sustainability of the programme now hangs in the balance as stakeholders demand greater accountability and transparency.
While the IMF has stated that it stands by its assessment of a US$214 million loss incurred through the Bank of Ghana’s Gold-for-Reserves programme by September 2025, it clarified that the report was intended to highlight operational and financial risks, rather than to classify the programme as loss-making. The Bank of Ghana, however, has described the IMF’s assessment as speculative, citing the use of unaudited figures.
The IMF’s Country Representative for Ghana, Dr. Adrian Alter, disclosed this during a conversation on PM Express Business Edition last week.
Dr. Alter explained that the assessment contained in the staff report was not meant to categorise the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme as loss-making, but rather to draw attention to operational and financial risks, particularly those related to GoldBod dealings.
He noted that “we understand that the numbers are still being audited as we speak, and there is the likelihood that the figures could go down marginally or go up.”
Dr. Alter acknowledged that the Bank of Ghana had described the IMF’s assessment as speculative because audited figures were still being prepared.
He stressed that the Fund stands by its assessment, which was meant to highlight expected challenges and not to cast doubt on the programme.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Ghana, in a statement issued on December 25, 2025, maintained that figures reported in relation to losses from gold operations in 2025 should be considered speculative.
The Bank argued that since its audited financial statements, including all relevant disclosures, will be published next year in accordance with statutory requirements, it would be inappropriate to give credence to such reports at this stage.
The Bank of Ghana further noted that although the IMF review flagged financial risks associated with the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme, these concerns should be viewed within the broader context of the programme’s significant macroeconomic contributions.
It stated that the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme has helped boost Ghana’s international reserves, support currency stability, and enable access to large volumes of foreign exchange without incurring new debt.
“The operational role of GOLDBOD as an aggregator has been important in channelling gold-based inflows from the small-scale mining sector into the official market,” the Bank of Ghana noted in its statement.
Consequently, Dr. Asiama has called for a review of the Gold-for-Reserves programme, urging the Minister for Finance, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, to consider a more sustainable financing structure for the Ghana Gold Board’s (GoldBod) trading operations.
He said such a rethink is necessary to ease the financial burden currently borne by the central bank.
Dr. Asiama made the appeal while responding to questions at a sitting of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, where concerns were raised about losses incurred by the Bank of Ghana in supporting GoldBod’s gold purchasing activities.
He explained that the programme plays a key role in building Ghana’s foreign reserves and therefore requires stronger backing from the Ministry of Finance.
“It’s not a question of shutting it down, but enhancing its efficiency by identifying the inefficiencies and addressing them,” he said.
According to the BoG Governor, a critical issue is whether the costs associated with the programme should continue to be absorbed by the central bank.
“The best thing now, in the national interest, is to review the trading model and determine whether the Ministry of Finance should make a budgetary allocation to cover the costs, given that this supports our reserves build-up,” Dr. Asiama stated.
He added that these are policy questions that require national-level consensus.
Dr. Asiama also noted that the Bank of Ghana has already taken steps to address some inefficiencies within the programme and stressed the need for a coordinated approach to ensure its long-term success.
“In the case of the Gold-for-Reserves programme, as the name suggests, the objective was to help build reserves, and the evidence is clear,” he said, pointing to improvements made so far.
“Going forward, let’s focus on the aspects we can fix in the interest of the country. It calls for a unified approach.”
The Bank of Ghana has come under intense scrutiny following revelations by the IMF in its fifth review of Ghana’s ongoing IMF programme, which indicated that losses from artisanal and small-scale gold transactions under the scheme had reached US$214 million by the end of September 2025.
While GoldBod itself has reportedly recorded profits, the IMF noted that the central bank absorbed most of the losses arising from the programme.
Story by: Henry George Martinson
