Adnan Adams Mohammad
Parliament has approved two most important bills which give a lifeline to the reset agenda as envisioned by the President John Dramani Mahama led administration.
The Appropriation bill and Ghana Gold Board bill are key instruments that allow the government to execute crucial economic policies stated in the 2025 budget statement. While the Appropriation bill allows the government to spend its budgetary allocations from the Consolidated Fund, the Goldbod bill sets a solid foundation for the restructuring of Ghana’s gold trading and export framework.
The government is permitted to spend GH¢293 billion from the Consolidated Fund and other public funds for the 2025 financial year per the Appropriation bill with GH¢68 billion allocated for wages and salaries and GH¢13 billion for the payment of arrears.
“Hon. members, the Appropriation 2025 is now read the third time and accordingly passed”, the First Deputy Speaker, Bernard Ahiafor, said in Parliament concluding the approval of the 2025 Appropriation Bill.
Meanwhile, the Goldbod bill is to regulate the gold industry, enhance transparency and traceability, and boost foreign exchange earnings.
It will oversee the purchase, sale, and export of gold, generating forex revenue needed to stabilize the cedi.
Despite criticism from the minority caucus, who argued that the bill promotes illegal mining activities, also known as ‘galamsey’, the house approved the bill by a majority decision.
The Majority Leader, Mahama Ayariga hailed the bill as a landmark legislation.
“Mr. Speaker, this is a landmark legislation. And those of us who sat through the night to the morning to pass this historic legislation Bill should be proud of ourselves. We have vindicated the trust and confidence Ghanaians reposed in us” he asserted.
“Indeed, the 24-hour economy has started in this chamber.”
This followed a walkout by the Minority in Parliament during the consideration of the Ghana Gold Board Bill 2025.
This was in response to the First Deputy Speaker, Bernard Ahiafor, disregarding their request to reconvene at 10 am on Saturday, March 29, to discuss the bill after passing the 2025 Appropriation Bill.
Addressing journalists, the Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, questioned the government’s commitment to combating illegal mining, citing the allocation of GH¢4.6 billion to the policy as a major concern.
Afenyo-Markin added, “If you say bring an enactment and say your focus is on small-scale mining, all of us in this country know that small-scale mining is galamsey. Is this government really ready to fight galamsey?
“How do you say you’re establishing a new entity that is going to monopolize the purchase of gold from small-scale miners, and now you are going to regulate galamsey and you’re going to give them money?”
Also, former Finance Minister, Dr Mohamed Amin Adam raised concerns over the structure of the proposed GoldBod initiative, cautioning that its design could create conflicts of interest.
Speaking in Parliament during deliberations on the GoldBod Bill, the Ranking Member on Parliament’s Finance Committee argued that international best practices discourage institutions from combining commercial operations with regulatory functions.
“The model where institutions are established to play multiple roles—combining commercial functions with regulatory oversight—is being discouraged worldwide,” he stated.
He explained that best practices require a clear separation between commercial and regulatory functions to ensure proper checks and balances.
“The best practice now is to separate the commercial role from the regulatory function so that effective oversight can be maintained,” he added.
Consequently, Dr. Amin Adam warned that, if passed in its current form, the GoldBod Bill would create an entity that trades, exports, regulates, and adjudicates disputes in the gold sector.
“If this bill is passed, GoldBod will be a commercial entity that trades and exports gold while also acting as a regulator and court. That is not right,” he cautioned.
He cited the oil sector as an example where Ghana successfully separated commercial and regulatory roles, pointing to the Petroleum Commission and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC).
“In the oil industry, the previous administration separated the Petroleum Commission from GNPC, ensuring that GNPC focused purely on commercial operations while the Petroleum Commission handled regulation,” he explained.
Dr. Amin Adam warned that failing to implement a similar structure for GoldBod could create conflicts of interest between regulatory oversight and commercial activities.
The GoldBod initiative, proposed by the government, aims to formalize gold trading, particularly within the small-scale mining sector, while promoting traceability to enhance Ghana’s international gold reputation.
The government envisions GoldBod as the sole buyer of gold from licensed small-scale miners through accredited aggregators, as well as the sole assayer. Officials argue that this approach will curb gold smuggling, improve foreign exchange reserves, and stabilize the cedi.
Currently, gold purchasing in Ghana involves multiple entities, including Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC), Bank of Ghana (BoG), Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF), private gold aggregators
However, Dr. Amin Adam commended the Bank of Ghana’s Domestic Gold Purchase Programme, launched in June 2021, for significantly boosting Ghana’s gold reserves.
He noted that before the initiative, Ghana’s total gold reserves stood at 8.74 tonnes. However, by the end of 2024, this had increased to 30.5 tonnes—a remarkable improvement in just three years.
“Since independence, Ghana’s gold reserves stood at 8.74 tonnes. But within three years, we increased this to 30.5 tonnes. This shows that the previous gold purchase program was effective,” he said.
The Bank of Ghana under its new executive management is continuing the domestic gold purchase programme but is discontinuing the gold for oil initiative introduced by the previous administration.
Dr. Amin Adam’s remarks underscore concerns about potential conflicts of interest in the GoldBod structure, urging Parliament to ensure proper oversight in the final legislation.
