The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has disclosed that losses under its Domestic Gold Purchase Programme (DGPP) surged to GH¢5.66 billion in 2024, marking a sharp escalation in the cost of the flagship initiative introduced to support currency stability.
Figures released to Asempa FM’s Ekosiisen programme in response to a Right to Information (RTI) request show that net losses widened dramatically from GH¢74 million in 2022 to GH¢1.37 billion in 2023, before ballooning last year.
The losses stem largely from Net G40 transactions, which cover gold and oil operations, and Net G4R transactions, linked to artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) gold and other segments.
Despite the worsening figures, the central bank defended the programme, describing it as a strategic reserve buffer essential to maintaining currency stability.
“The DGPP is a strategic programme that promotes currency stability, which is one of the Bank’s reserve buffers,” the BoG said.
Preliminary figures for 2025 indicate that the Bank purchased 110.99 tonnes of gold, including 100.6 tonnes from the ASM sector, valued at approximately US$11.4 billion, though the BoG noted that these figures remain subject to external audit confirmation.
Analysts, however, have warned that the rapidly rising losses highlight the difficulties of managing large-scale gold purchasing operations alongside other financial instruments, even as the programme boosts reserves.
The RTI request, filed by the host of Ekosiisen, Philip Osei Bonsu, cites Article 21(f) of the 1992 Constitution and the Right to Information Act, 2019 (Act 989), and calls for a detailed, year-by-year breakdown of gold purchases, their financial value, and all recorded profits or losses since the programme began.
It further notes that while the BoG’s 2024 Annual Report made no reference to losses under the programme, the central bank has yet to publish a comprehensive public account of the financial performance of the Gold for Reserves (G4R) initiative since its inception.
