Domestic Gold Purchase Programme Drained Bank of Ghana’s finances- IMF 

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised fresh concerns regarding the financial health of the Bank of Ghana. Recent evaluation reports show that the central bank’s aggressive Domestic Gold Purchase Programme incurred over $1.7 billion in operational and accounting losses.

While the ambitious gold policy helped rescue the local currency, it created serious financial strain on the nation’s primary balance sheet.

According to official IMF reports, scaling up local gold purchases allowed Ghana to build gross international reserves up to $11.9 billion. This bold initiative offered the Cedi vital support against major foreign currencies.

However, the rapid push triggered sizable operational expenses. Expenses including foreign exchange rate differentials, local assay charges, and purchasing premiums eroded central bank capital reserves rapidly.

• Total Financial Drain: Over $1.7 billion in net losses recorded under the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme.
• National Output Impact: The reported loss equals approximately 1.5% of total gross domestic product.
• Exchange Rate Gap: Significant price differences between local bureau rates and official reference rates fueled financial losses.
• Central Bank Equity: Bank of Ghana negative equity extended to roughly 6.7% of national output.

Economic analysts argue that while the reserve accumulation rescued import cover, policy costs were surprisingly steep.

The central bank insists these numbers represent quasi-fiscal stabilization costs rather than straightforward cash wastage. Moving forward, operations are transitioning toward structured bodies like GoldBod to minimize administrative charges and improve institutional accountability.

Ghanaians expect fiscal authorities to strike a clear balance between protecting foreign exchange reserves and managing internal public debt wisely.

This coverage is relevant because it breaks down the official IMF report detailing how Ghana’s gold purchase strategy impacted the central bank’s finances.

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