The opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) has demanded the disclosure of the identities of foreign companies purchasing Ghana’s gold, as well as the contracts, discounts and other commercial terms governing the transactions.

A member of the NPP’s Policy Coordinating Committee on Finance and Economy and former Finance Minister, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, made the demand at a press conference on Tuesday, September 1.

He said publishing the details would help Ghanaians understand how the country’s gold was being sold and whether the transactions offered value for money.

“We want to know the names of the foreign buyers of Ghana’s gold and the discounts and commercial terms they were given. Those contracts must be published,” Dr Amin Adam said.

The former Finance Minister claimed that discounts offered under the gold purchase programme contributed to financial losses associated with the operations.

He also expressed concern about reported plans to allow foreign buyers to pre-finance gold purchases, arguing that the arrangement could give the companies greater influence over the prices and terms of the transactions.

“Allowing foreign buyers to pre-finance purchases of gold would deepen the very discounts that have been draining value from the programme,” he alleged.

Dr Amin Adam said financing gold purchases through commercial banks could also introduce additional interest and guarantee costs.

“Financing through commercial banks, as we now know they are doing, brings interest and guarantee costs because commercial banks will charge them. The Bank of Ghana pre-financed them interest-free. It is not going to be the same,” he stated.

The NPP therefore asked Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson to clarify whether the government would guarantee the new financing arrangement and disclose the legal authority under which any guarantee would be provided.

“We are asking the Finance Minister whether the Ministry will guarantee this new financing and under what legal authority,” Dr Amin Adam said.

He further demanded the publication of the agreement governing the reported transfer of about GH¢133 billion in central bank funds through GoldBod.

“We have not seen that agreement. What are the terms between GoldBod and the Bank of Ghana?” he asked.

Dr Amin Adam maintained that the requested documents already existed and that several of them were required by law to be made available to the public.

The NPP also called for a signed reconciliation by the Bank of Ghana, GoldBod and the Ministry of Finance to explain the reported differences in the financial figures associated with the gold operations.

The party said greater disclosure was necessary to promote accountability and enable the public to establish whether Ghana received fair value from the sale of its gold.