The Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) and the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) have begun technical collaboration to track and trace illicit financial inflows linked to Ghana’s gold trading sector.
The initiative, supported by the United Kingdom Ghana Gold Programme (UKGGP), is intended to strengthen intelligence sharing, financial monitoring and enforcement across the gold value chain as Ghana seeks to tighten controls around the trade.
The three institutions held their first technical meeting, marking the operational start of the collaboration and establishing a framework for information sharing, defined responsibilities and joint follow-up on suspected illicit financial activity.
The Deputy Chief Executive Officer of GoldBod Richard Nunekpeku said the Board was committed to working closely with EOCO to ensure that gold trading in Ghana complies with local and international standards.
“We give full support to management and look forward to ensuring that the gold trade is conducted in compliance with local and international standards. These frameworks are from credible sources and are traceable,” he said.
He said closer cooperation between GoldBod and EOCO would improve the flow of intelligence between the institutions while strengthening their ability to monitor transactions and identify financial activities associated with illicit gold trading.
The collaboration is expected to give enforcement agencies greater visibility into the movement of funds within the gold sector, particularly where financial flows may be linked to activities that undermine Ghana’s efforts to formalise and regulate the industry.
Head of Investigations at EOCO, Felix Mawulolo Amegashie, said gold remains a critical component of Ghana’s economy and stressed the importance of having stronger oversight of the money moving through the sector.
He said the partnership would provide the institutions with “a clearer line of sight” over financial movements associated with gold trading.
With EOCO’s support, the work ahead is to keep Ghana’s gold trade sanitised.
The initiative comes as Ghana continues efforts to strengthen governance and accountability across the gold industry, where the scale of financial transactions creates significant exposure to money laundering, illicit financial flows and other forms of organised economic crime.
The UKGGP is supporting Ghana’s efforts to develop a transparent, well-regulated and responsibly sourced gold sector, bringing technical assistance and international compliance practices to the collaboration.
The technical meeting provides the foundation for the institutions to move from broad commitments to a more structured system of cooperation aimed at tracing financial flows and strengthening enforcement within Ghana’s gold trade.
