Former Vice President and Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has in recent years been credited for the idea behind Ghana’s Domestic Gold Purchase Programme (DGPP), with proponents saying he proposed that Ghana use its locally produced gold to build the country’s reserves.
The claim has generated political debate, with some critics questioning whether the programme can properly be described as a Bawumia initiative.
A review of statements made by Dr. Bawumia, former Bank of Ghana Governor Dr. Ernest Addison, the Ghana Chamber of Mines and subsequent Bank of Ghana documents, however, shows that the former Vice President played a significant role in initiating and championing the idea.
Bawumia’s account of the idea
Dr. Bawumia has consistently said the idea originated from his concern about Ghana’s foreign-exchange position and the country’s status as a major gold producer.
In August 2026, he explained that the concept of what he described as a “Gold-for-Reserves” programme occurred to him while he was exercising and reflecting on Ghana’s foreign-exchange challenges.
His question, according to his account, was why Ghana had to earn foreign exchange from other exports before acquiring gold for its reserves.
“Why does Ghana, which mines gold every day, have to export cocoa to get dollars for its forex reserves? Why not buy the gold we already produce with cedis?”
Dr. Bawumia said the proposal was unconventional. “It was not a textbook idea.”
He said he subsequently presented the proposal to the Bank of Ghana for consideration.
While that account was given in 2026, a substantially similar version of events had already been publicly stated by Bawumia in 2021, shortly after the programme was launched.
What Bawumia said in 2021
On July 1, 2021, about two weeks after the Bank of Ghana formally launched the DGPP, Dr. Bawumia addressed the Ghana Gold Expo in Takoradi.
He said that about a year earlier, he had suggested to the Bank of Ghana that it explores the purchase of locally produced gold as a way of strengthening Ghana’s economy and supporting the cedi.
According to Bawumia, the Bank subsequently studied Ghana’s gold production value chain and worked on the procedures required to make the idea operational.
“The Bank of Ghana spent a whole year carefully studying the entire gold production value chain and putting in place the necessary internationally acceptable procedures.”
Addison’s key acknowledgement
The strongest independent evidence of Bawumia’s role comes from the official launch of the programme.
On June 17, 2021, then Bank of Ghana Governor Dr. Ernest Addison launched the Bank’s Domestic Gold Purchase Programme.
In his speech, Dr. Addison explained that the programme was intended to enable the Bank to purchase domestically produced gold and use it to increase the gold component of Ghana’s foreign-exchange reserves. He said the Bank expected to double its gold holdings over five years
At the end of his speech, Dr. Addison said: “let me acknowledge the support of His Excellency the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia who got this programme started.”
He went on to acknowledge the roles of other stakeholders, including the Minerals Commission, PMMC, the Ghana Chamber of Mines and licensed gold aggregators.
What the Chamber of Mines record shows
The Ghana Chamber of Mines’ records also provide evidence of Bawumia’s engagement with the mining industry around the programme.
In its September 2022 publication, the Chamber reported that a meeting involving Dr. Bawumia, members of the Economic Management Team, the Bank of Ghana, the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, the Minerals Commission, PMMC and the leadership of the Chamber was held to consider the Bank’s Gold Purchase Programme.
Following that engagement, Bawumia explained the arrangement under which the Bank would purchase part of the output of gold mining companies.
The chamber noted: “it was agreed, that to help shore up the foreign exchange reserves of the Bank of Ghana, starting September 1st, the Bank of Ghana will purchase a portion of the output of the gold mining companies on a continuous basis at world market prices, but payment will be made in Ghana cedis”.
The Chamber’s account is significant here not primarily because of the volume of gold involved, but because it documents direct engagement between Bawumia, the central bank and Ghana’s major gold producers over the programme.
It shows that Dr. Bawumia was involved in discussions with the industry on how the domestic gold-purchase concept would be pursued.
The Bank of Ghana’s role
The Bank of Ghana’s own records establish that the DGPP became a formal Bank of Ghana programme on June 17, 2021.
At the launch, Governor Addison described it as a major change in the Bank’s reserve-management approach. The programme would allow the Bank to purchase domestically produced gold, pay in local currency, refine the gold to internationally acceptable standards and hold it as part of Ghana’s reserves.
The Bank therefore clearly had responsibility for developing and institutionalising the programme. But that institutional role does not necessarily conflict with Bawumia’s role in initiating the underlying policy idea.
In fact, Addison’s own words distinguish the two roles: he described Bawumia as the person who had “got this programme started”, while acknowledging the collaborative role of the Bank and other stakeholders.
What can be attributed to Bawumia?
The evidence supports Bawumia’s significant role in initiating the programme.
Verdict
Verdict: Bawumia was a key initiator and political champion of the idea behind the DGPP.
Source:Fiilafmonline/CitiNews
