Former Minister, Dr. Kwabena Donkor, has welcomed the recent rebranding and reopening of Goldbod’s jewellery shop but says Ghana must not stop there.
Dr. Donkor stressed that while the initiative by the Goldbod is commendable, it should be seen as only a starting point toward building a full-fledged gold and jewellery industry.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with The High Street Journal, the former Member of Parliament maintained that a jewellery shop alone is not enough, given the country’s track record in gold production.
The country, he says, must consciously and deliberately develop a jewellery industry. For him, the former Gold Coast must become a major finished gold market, a finished gold product market, and that is a fully-fledged jewellery market.
Turning Gold into Opportunity
He tells The High Street Journal that Ghana’s gold refining efforts are valuable but insufficient if the country continues to rely on exporting raw gold without adding value.
He believes that “in refining gold, we have to go further to develop a gold industry, a jewellery industry. Not small-scale. Goldbod has just re-branded or re-commissioned their jewellery shop. That is a good start, but that is not the main thrust. It’s not just a jewellery shop. We have to develop a jewellery industry.”
He pointed out that the jewellery industry, when properly developed, offers enormous potential for job creation, skill development, and foreign exchange earnings.
According to him, with strategic investment, Ghana could transform its status from a raw material exporter to a producer of high-value finished products.
Investing in Skills and Value Addition
Highlighting the role of education, Dr. Donkor mentioned the College of Arts at KNUST, which already runs a jewellery course. He believes such initiatives should be expanded and supported through national policies and funding.
Dr. Donkor is of the opinion that the country should be thinking about how to use some of our national funds, like our pension funds, to invest in the jewellery industry. The jewellery industry, he says, offers very high returns, and it’s time the country taps into it.
He urged policymakers and investors to recognize the broader value chain that the industry can create, from training artisans and designers to establishing factories and export markets.
“The College of Arts, KNUST, runs a jewellery course. How do we encourage, as a nation, how do we use some of our funds, like our pension funds, how do we get them to move into the jewellery industry?” he quizzed.
He added, “there are very high returns in the jewellery industry. The former Gold Coast must become a major finished gold market, a finished gold product market, that is, a jewellery market.”
Breaking the Chains of a Rigid Economy
Dr. Donkor linked Ghana’s persistent unemployment and economic vulnerability to its overdependence on the export of raw materials.
Drawing on historical data, he explained that in 1927, cocoa, gold, and timber made up about 90% of Ghana’s exports, all shipped in their raw form. Nearly a century later, little has changed.
“Take a look at our 2024 budget or our export returns. Three commodities account for about 70% or more of our exports. This time, gold, cocoa, and crude oil exported largely raw. So, at the heart of our underdevelopment and at the heart of the great youth unemployment lies a rigid economic structure that depends on the export of raw materials,” he lamented.
According to Dr. Donkor, economic transformation will not happen automatically, it requires deliberate, sustained action.
“The rigidities of the Ghanaian economy will not dissolve on their own,” he stated firmly. “They must be resolved through purposeful, strategic decisions that prioritize industrialization and value addition.”
He is convinced that developing a jewellery industry is not just an economic necessity but a symbol of national pride. The rebranding of Goldbod’s jewellery shop is a good beginning, but the ultimate goal is far greater, and that is to build a thriving, globally competitive jewellery industry.
