Gold dealers in Ghana who buy from unlicensed sources risk prosecution under new enforcement measures aimed at tightening regulation of the sector, the head of the country’s Gold Board has said.
Chief Executive Officer Sammy Gyamfi told Joy News that authorities are introducing stricter controls to ensure all gold traded can be traced to responsible and licensed sources.
He said the Board has formalised gold trading, requiring all buyers to obtain licences that allow regulators to monitor their activities.
“Once you have our licence, we can control you, because it is granted under law and comes with clear conditions on how gold should be purchased,” he said.
Mr Gyamfi added that licence holders are only permitted to buy from approved miners and warned that violations would be treated as criminal offences.
“Section 50(9C) of the Gold Board Act makes it a crime to breach any condition of your licence. That serves as a deterrent,” he said.
He issued a direct warning to dealers attempting to bypass the system.
“If you are caught buying gold from anyone other than a licensed miner, you can be prosecuted,” he said.
The Gold Board is also developing systems to track gold purchases and ensure they originate from responsible mining operations.
“Every gram of gold must come from a responsible source, not just a licensed one,” Mr Gyamfi said.
He noted that wider reforms are underway in collaboration with the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources to formalise artisanal miners and integrate them into regulated small-scale mining schemes.
The formalisation programme is expected to be rolled out soon, with support from the government, while work on a national traceability system is already in progress.
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