Co-Chair of the Ghana Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (GHEITI), Dr Steve Manteaw, has dismissed claims that the Gold Board (GoldBod) is purchasing gold from small-scale miners at discounted rates.

Reacting to comments made by Ghanaian politician Kofi Koranteng on Joy Prime’s Insight programme, Dr Manteaw described the assertions as “sheer ignorance or mischief on display,” emphasizing that such claims are unfounded and misleading.

“GoldBod is not buying gold at a discount. I say this on authority, as Co-Chair of the Ghana Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative and an expert on the subject,” Dr. Manteaw stated.

He explained that the variation in local gold prices compared to previous years is due to foreign exchange differentials, not any artificial discount imposed by GoldBod.

“Under the previous government, the cedi depreciated to about GHC17 to the dollar. At that time, the international price of gold was multiplied by 17, so miners received more in cedi terms. Today, the cedi has appreciated to around GHC12 to the dollar, which means the same international price multiplied by 12 yields less,” he explained.

Dr. Manteaw added that it was “annoying” to hear individuals speak “as if they were authorities on the subject,” warning that such commentary misleads the public and distorts economic understanding of the sector.