The International Monetary Fund (IMF) records in its Selected Issues Paper on the Bank of Ghana’s Domestic Gold Purchase Programme, published in August 2026 as SIP/2026/084, that the Bank of Ghana bought and exported around 104 tonnes of artisanal and small-scale gold in 2025, for US$10.9 billion. In the same year the Bank of Ghana bought US$1.26 billion of gold bullion, equal to around 12 percent of large-scale mine output. Under a memorandum of understanding, the programme’s operations pass in full to the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) from 1 July 2026, and the Bank of Ghana remains GoldBod’s fiscal agent and the recipient of monetary gold for its reserves. The Ghana Accelerated National Reserve Accumulation Policy (GANRAP) changes how the state buys gold from large-scale mines:
| Gold from large-scale mines | Bank of Ghana purchases to mid-2026 | GANRAP |
|---|---|---|
| Volume | Up to 20 percent, frequently much lower | 30 percent of output targeted, double recent purchases |
| Stage at purchase | Already refined | Before refining |
| Refining | LBMA-certified refineries abroad, mostly in Europe | In Ghana, then validated at an LBMA-certified South African refinery |
No refinery in Ghana is on the LBMA Good Delivery List, and under LBMA’s description of its Good Delivery accreditation only bars meeting the Good Delivery standard can settle a loco London contract. Bullion the Bank of Ghana bought to mid-2026 is held abroad, in vaults of foreign central banks or with bullion banks. Gold bought under GANRAP is refined in Ghana and reaches an LBMA-certified refinery only at the South African validation step, so Good Delivery status for those bars turns on that step.
Artisanal doré under the programme is acquired by GoldBod, acting as broker, from aggregators and exported by private off-takers, and the foreign-currency proceeds go into reserves. The IMF paper records that a single aggregator accounted for more than 60 percent of 2025 artisanal gold exports, and that about 229 tonnes of artisanal gold are absent from official trade data for 2019 to 2024. A listed refiner taking this doré covers it in its due diligence under the LBMA Responsible Gold Guidance, which LBMA’s Responsible Sourcing Programme subjects to annual independent audit and public reporting. GoldBod has committed to align its sourcing with that guidance and the OECD Due Diligence Guidance, and the IMF paper calls for stronger KYC and AML-CFT controls, risk-based supplier onboarding and mine-to-export traceability.
The paper, also issued as IMF Country Report No. 26/213, is IMF staff background analysis for Ghana’s consultations with the IMF, on information to 10 July 2026. Purchase terms under GANRAP are set by the Ghanaian authorities and GoldBod, and Good Delivery accreditation of any refinery in Ghana rests with LBMA.