The Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) was established in 2025 by an Act of Parliament (ACT 1140) as a corporate body tasked with overseeing, regulating, and managing activities related to gold and other precious minerals in Ghana. These responsibilities include buying, selling, assaying, refining, exporting, and other related operations within the sector.
Under Section 78 of ACT 1140, GoldBod assumed the rights, obligations, assets, liabilities, and workforce of the Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC) Limited, a former subsidiary of the Ghana Diamond Marketing Board. This transition marked a significant restructuring of Ghana’s precious minerals trading landscape aimed at improving efficiency and maximizing national benefits.
The history of GoldBod’s predecessor organizations traces back to 1963 when the Ghana Diamond Marketing Board was established to purchase and market Ghana’s diamonds. Two years later, in 1965, it was incorporated as a State-Owned Enterprise (SOE) by Legislative Instrument (LI) 401. Subsequent legal reforms changed its name and mandate: in 1972, it became the Diamond Marketing Corporation under LI 916, and in 1989, PNDC Law 219 rebranded it as the Precious Minerals Marketing Corporation with expanded functions including grading, assaying, and valuing gold, diamonds, and other precious minerals.
In 2000, following the Statutory Corporations Conversion to Companies Act (ACT 461), the corporation was converted into a Limited Liability Company, operating as Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC) Limited under the Ghana Companies Code Act (ACT 179). The PMMC was further appointed by the government as the national assayer in 2016.
Recognizing the need for stronger regulation and optimized returns from the precious minerals sector, the Ghanaian government officially established the Ghana Gold Board on April 2, 2025. This move followed extensive consultations with stakeholders and aims to streamline the trading sector, enhance foreign exchange earnings, increase gold reserve accumulation, and promote value addition for sustainable economic growth.
Since its inception, GoldBod, alongside the PMMC, has made remarkable progress. Between January and October 15, 2025, Ghana’s small-scale gold exports generated over $8 billion in foreign exchange, a significant boost to the country’s foreign reserves and economic recovery efforts. The agency licensed the export of 81,719.23 kilograms of gold from the small-scale mining sector, valued at approximately $8.06 billion—a dramatic increase from the $4.61 billion recorded in 2024, when 42,863.23 kilograms were exported.
Notably, the gold export earnings in the first half of 2025 alone surpassed $5 billion, exceeding the total revenue from gold exports in the entire year of 2024. This impressive growth underscores the success of GoldBod’s initiatives, which include aggressive reforms, enhanced regulatory oversight, and tighter control over the gold supply chain to combat smuggling and ensure compliance.
The establishment of the Ghana Gold Board marks a new chapter in the country’s precious minerals sector, reinforcing Ghana’s position as a leading gold exporter while fostering sustainable development and economic transformation.