Ghana must use gold to reduce overdependence on dollar – Gideon Boako

Tano North Member of Parliament (MP), Gideon Boako, says Ghana must strategically use its gold resources to reduce its overdependence on the US dollar and strengthen the country’s economic sovereignty.

Dr Boako said Ghana’s position as a major gold-producing country gives it an opportunity to convert part of its natural-resource wealth into a strategic reserve asset.

He argued that accumulating domestically produced gold could provide an additional layer of protection against external shocks and periods of foreign exchange shortages.

Dr Boako said the approach was particularly important at a time when countries were reconsidering the risks associated with holding large portions of their reserves in foreign currencies.

“For all economies, it is a hedge against over-reliance on any single reserve currency,” Dr Boako said.

According to him, Ghana’s gold strategy should therefore go beyond traditional mining and export activities and focus on retaining greater value from the country’s gold within the domestic economy.

He said this could help strengthen international reserves, support the stability of the cedi and reduce the need for excessive external borrowing.

Dr Boako maintained that Ghana’s experience could also serve as a model for other commodity-producing economies.

“By channelling domestically produced gold into reserves, countries reduce external borrowing costs, dampen currency crises and retain value onshore,” he said.

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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.