Keypoints:
- Ghana earns under 10% from foreign gold firms
- Goldbod earned $1.1bn from gold in one month
- A national mine could secure long-term wealth
GHANA is at the edge of an historic opportunity—one that could define the trajectory of our economy, our democracy, and our sovereignty for generations to come. With a rare two-thirds parliamentary majority, the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) possesses the legislative strength to transform Ghana’s economy from one of dependency to one of ownership.
That transformation must begin with gold.
Beneath our soil lies an estimated 2,500 to 3,500 metric tonnes of gold, valued between $270bn and $375bn. This is not an abstract figure. It is real wealth—tangible, extractable, and vital in an era of global economic instability and currency devaluation.
And yet, despite sitting on this treasure, Ghana earns less than 10 percent of the total value of gold mined on its territory. The overwhelming majority of the profits flow to foreign companies based in Canada, Australia, South Africa and elsewhere. Their shareholders gain, while Ghanaians remain stuck in a cycle of borrowing and underdevelopment.
This is not just unjust—it is economically suicidal.
Goldbod’s success is proof of what’s possible
In June 2025, Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson made a powerful revelation: Ghana had earned more than $1.1bn in foreign exchange in just one month, following the full activation of the Goldbod initiative, which oversees the export and marketing of gold produced locally.
This remarkable figure—achieved without owning a single mine—demonstrates the vast value that can be unlocked simply by controlling a part of the gold value chain.
Goldbod is just the beginning. If we can earn $1.1bn by handling exports, how much more could we earn if Ghana owned and operated even one mid-sized gold mine?
The economics of ownership
A medium-scale state-owned mining company would cost an estimated $100 million to $200 million to establish over a three-year period. Compared to Ghana’s annual borrowing and debt service costs, this is a modest investment with enormous upside.
If properly managed, such a mine could return up to 80 percent of gold revenues directly to the state, as opposed to the 6 to 10 percent we currently receive through taxes, royalties, and minimal equity stakes in multinational operations.
That revenue could pave roads, build hospitals, fund public education, and stabilise the cedi. It could form the foundation of a national industrialisation strategy, enabling the country to refine its gold, manufacture value-added products, and expand formal employment.
The case is as much about dignity as economics. Ghana cannot continue to be known as the Gold Coast while having no significant public ownership over its gold reserves.
Africa is changing: Mali and Burkina Faso lead the way
Ghana is not alone in confronting the injustice of resource exploitation. Across West Africa, a wave of resource nationalism is reshaping the mining sector, especially in gold-rich countries like Mali and Burkina Faso.
In Mali, the military-led government announced sweeping reforms in 2023 to increase the state’s stake in gold mining operations. Under the new mining code, the Malian state now has a 30 percent free carry interest in all new mining ventures, up from the previous 20 percent. Moreover, the government reserves the right to purchase an additional 5 percent stake in any mining company, bringing its potential share to 35 percent.
Mali also moved to review old contracts and cancelled several dormant concessions held by foreign companies. It is now insisting on domestic refining of gold—a clear push to retain value within the country and develop local downstream industries.
Burkina Faso, too, is asserting itself. In 2023, the country revised its mining code to increase taxes on gold exports and expand state equity in mining operations. Like Mali, Burkina Faso has also taken back several under-utilised concessions and is encouraging local partnerships and refining.
These are not isolated moves. They reflect a broader West African shift towards sovereignty over strategic resources—a recognition that true independence is impossible without economic control.
Ghana must not lag behind
Ghana, with its longer democratic tradition and stronger institutions, should be leading this movement—not following it.
Yet for too long, successive governments have taken a timid approach. They have signed stability agreements that lock Ghana into decades-long tax and royalty regimes favourable to foreign companies. They have privatised state stakes in key mines and watched silently as profits left the country.
Only Kwame Nkrumah dared to pursue a radical national policy on minerals, through state-led ventures like the Ghana Consolidated Diamonds and the Volta Aluminium Company. His vision was one of resource-backed industrialisation. But his successors either abandoned or dismantled these ideas.
Now, the moment has returned—and the opportunity is even greater.
With Goldbod already in place, Ghana has a proven model for controlling its gold exports. What remains is to close the loop: mine the gold, refine it, market it, and use the proceeds to develop the country.
Legislative action and legal protection
To make this work, the NDC must move swiftly to establish a state-owned gold mining company, backed by a clear legal framework that ensures professionalism, transparency and independence from political interference.
This company should be governed by a board of technocrats, report regularly to parliament, and publish audited financials. It should be barred from excessive borrowing and protected from backdoor asset stripping.
Most importantly, the NDC must pass a constitutional amendment or entrenched statute that prohibits the sale of majority shares in this company to any private or foreign entity. Ghana’s gold must remain Ghanaian—permanently.
We must learn from the mistakes of the past, where strategic assets like Ghana Telecom and Ghana Oil Palm Development Company were sold off with little long-term benefit.
Build for the next century—not the next election
This project is not about short-term political gain. It is about laying the foundation for the next 50, even 100 years. Ghana is blessed not only with gold, but also with manganese, bauxite, lithium, iron ore, and oil. A state-owned gold company could be the nucleus of a broader national resources corporation—one that operates like Saudi Aramco or Indonesia’s Pertamina.
Such a vision demands courage. It requires resisting pressure from foreign embassies, lobbyists, and multinational corporations. It requires building institutional strength so that public ownership does not mean inefficiency.
But the rewards are immense: sovereignty, development, pride.
No more excuses
The stars have aligned. The government has the votes. The economy is desperate for transformation. The public is ready. And Goldbod has shown the model works.
There is no opposition strong enough to stop this. There is no court order blocking it. The only thing standing between Ghana and economic independence is the will to act.
President Mahama and the NDC must now decide: Will they be remembered as custodians of the status quo—or the leaders who made Ghana whole again?
A message for the moment
Let Ghana rise—not as a supplier of raw materials to the world, but as a nation bold enough to own its wealth, refine its future, and reinvest in its people.
Let our gold not be a story of regret, but one of redemption. Let it build schools, strengthen the cedi, and restore belief in what Ghana can do for itself.
If Burkina Faso and Mali, with all their instability, can take these bold steps—what excuse does Ghana have?
Reclaim the gold. Rebuild the country. Rewrite our future.
If not now—when?
