The Ghana Gold Board (GOLDBOD) has announced plans to establish District Gold Buying Centres (DGBCs) across mining districts to improve oversight, transparency and accountability in the country’s gold trading sector.

Chief Executive Officer of GOLDBOD, Sammy Gyamfi, said the initiative forms part of a broader reform agenda aimed at strengthening monitoring of gold purchases while protecting the interests of licensed buyers and the state.

Speaking at a meeting with the Ghana National Association of Small-Scale Miners in Anyinam in the Atiwa East District, Mr Gyamfi explained that the centres will serve as structured markets where gold purchasing activities can be monitored and properly recorded.

“We have given them our licenses and money to purchase gold for us but there is no representation from us to monitor the purchasing agreement, so this year we have decided to introduce some reforms to make the trading transparent and beneficial to all stakeholders,” he said.

He noted that although the initial plan was to make it mandatory for licensed buyers to operate from the centres, consultations with stakeholders led to the decision to make participation optional.

Despite the flexibility, Mr Gyamfi cautioned that the agency would intensify supervision of buyers who choose not to operate from the centres but engage in unfair trading practices.

“We have decided not to make it mandatory again but henceforth, we will tighten our monitoring supervision to crack the whip on anybody who engages in underpricing and hoarding,” he warned.

According to him, the centres will include representatives from GOLDBOD, the Minerals Commission, district or municipal assemblies and the small-scale miners association to ensure transparency in the gold purchasing process.

“These buying centres will have representation from the Ghana Gold Board, the Minerals Commission, the District or Municipal Assemblies and the Small-scale Miners Association. This is to ensure transparency and accountability in our gold trading business,” he added.

Mr Gyamfi also announced incentive packages to encourage licensed buyers to conduct their transactions through the new centres.

“Apart from the special bonuses we offer them, GOLDBOD has decided to add risk and transportation allowances to encourage responsible sourcing and purchasing,” he said.

The move is expected to address challenges within the current decentralised system, which makes it difficult to accurately track gold purchases from miners and verify the operational locations of licensed buyers, creating room for under-declaration and revenue leakages.

By centralising transactions through the buying centres, GOLDBOD hopes to curb smuggling, reduce losses and improve pricing efficiency across Ghana’s gold value chain.