Ghana will deepen the diversification of its foreign exchange reserves with more reserve gold accumulation in the coming years to strengthen the local cedi currency, President John Dramani Mahama pledged on Friday.
Mahama said in his message of the state of the nation in parliament that the projected continuous surge in world gold prices over the next three years presented the West African country with a unique opportunity to increase its gold reserves to strengthen the local currency.
“We have an opportunity to build an economic war chest to withstand global economic shocks, secure macroeconomic stability, improve the standard of living for Ghanaians, and build lasting prosperity for future generations,” Mahama stressed.
The president said the country’s reserve accumulation of above 13 billion U.S. dollars, or five months of import cover, was partly due to the work of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), which has streamlined gold trade, eliminating or reducing smuggling and increasing official gold export volumes to earn more foreign exchange for the country.
According to him, the recently introduced Ghana Accelerated National Reserve Accumulation Policy (GANRAP), a framework to guide the government’s reserve gold purchase program, is intended to strengthen Ghana’s external resilience “by increasing our international reserves to 15 months of import cover by the end of 2028, supporting long-term structural transformation while safeguarding macroeconomic stability.”
The GANRAP, according to the president, underscores the government’s commitment to using Ghana’s natural resources strategically to shield the economy from external shocks and build confidence in the country’s economic management framework.
“As global uncertainty grows, it is necessary to reduce our country’s exposure to external shocks, break the cycle of economic downturns, and safeguard macroeconomic stability,” the president stressed.
He added, “When the cedi, (Ghana’s currency) stabilizes, imported inflation falls.” Businesses can plan more effectively, and household incomes improve.”
Parliament had earlier approved the GANRAP, which empowers the GoldBod to generate foreign exchange and support reserve accumulation through the Bank of Ghana.
Under the program, the West African cocoa, gold, and crude oil exporter aims to achieve 8.6 months of import cover by the end of 2026, 11.8 months by 2027, and reach 15 months by 2028. Enditem