- BoG Governor says ending Gold-for-Oil eased fuel shortages and queues
- Programme was cancelled in March 2025 due to operational challenges
- External audit of Gold-for-Oil underway with PPA approval
The Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Dr. Johnson Asiama, has justified the central bank’s decision to discontinue the Gold-for-Oil programme in March 2025, while highlighting ongoing measures to strengthen the Gold-for-Reserves initiative.
Addressing Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in Accra, Dr. Asiama said one of the main goals of the Gold-for-Oil policy—to ease fuel shortages and eliminate long queues at filling stations—has been achieved since the programme was cancelled.
“Since we ended the Gold-for-Oil programme in March 2025, we have not experienced a build-up of queues at fuel pumps. That was one of the policy’s key objectives, and based on that outcome, we believe the decision to cancel it was justified,” he told the committee on Monday, January 12.
The Governor acknowledged that the Gold-for-Oil initiative faced significant operational challenges, which led the Bank of Ghana to order a comprehensive review of the programme.
He disclosed that the BoG Board had approved an external audit of the policy, with clearance from the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) secured two months ago, and confirmed that the audit is currently in progress.
“There were numerous issues within the Gold-for-Oil programme that needed to be examined. As a result, the board authorised an external audit, and with PPA approval obtained two months ago, the process is now underway,” Dr. Asiama explained.
On the Gold-for-Reserves policy, the Governor clarified that its primary purpose is to strengthen Ghana’s foreign exchange reserves.
He noted that available data indicates the programme remains sound but requires specific reforms to address inefficiencies and improve performance.
“The goal of Gold-for-Reserves is to build up our reserves,” he said. “The evidence so far shows that it should not be discontinued, but rather refined by addressing inefficiencies. That is why we took steps to engage GoldBod.”
