The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), Sammy Gyamfi, has blamed the drastic fall in small-scale gold production and foreign exchange inflows in 2021 on a fiscal policy change by the previous administration.

Speaking on Joy FM’s News File on January 3, 2026, Gyamfi stated that the introduction of a 3% withholding tax on the small-scale gold sector that year caused exports to plummet from 39.3 tonnes ($2 billion) in 2020 to just 3.4 tonnes ($185 million) in 2021.

He described the move as a costly mishap that deprived Ghana of billions in potential foreign exchange.

“In 2021, the NPP introduced a 3% withholding tax on small-scale gold. Small-scale gold exports output declined sharply that year from 39.3 tons in 2020 worth 2 billion dollars to 3.4 tons. The whole year 2021 Ghana got 3.4 tons from small-scale sector because of 3% discount in the form of withholding tax. And FX inflows reduced from 2 billion dollars from 2020 to $185 million,” Gyamfi explained.

Bawa Rock gave an advance payment guarantee of GH¢2 billion - Sammy Gyamfi

Comparing this incident with the current strategic focus of both the GoldBod and the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Gyamfi noted that the current primary mandate of these institutions is to bolster gold reserves, support currency stability, and enable broader economic policy.

According to him, the BoG is a banker to the government rather than a profit-maximising entity.

“Learning from this experience, the Bank of Ghana does not pursue its own accounting profits. Because the Bank of Ghana is a banker of last resort, it’s a banker of government, it is mandated to achieve price stability and support the government’s economic policy.

“They are there to build reserves to ensure that your currency is strong, and when you achieve that, the benefits you get render any accounting loss infinitesimal,” he stated.

Gyamfi’s comments come amid public discussions on GoldBod’s financial performance. He dismissed recent reports of a $214 million deficit as “inaccurate.”

Citing provisional management accounts for 2025, Gyamfi reported that GoldBod generated over GH₵960 million in revenue against expenditures below GH₵120 million, positioning the institution to declare a significant surplus.

ID/AE