President John Mahama of Ghana commended the Ghana Gold Board, or GoldBod, for its impact on the nation's mining sector during the Mining in Motion Conference. According to MyJoyOnline, the President highlighted the board's contribution to the growth of gold exports and the promotion of responsible small-scale mining practices. He noted that the establishment of GoldBod in April 2025 coincided with a significant rise in exports from the artisanal and small-scale mining sector.
The President reported that Ghana exported 64 tonnes of gold from this sector in 2024. In 2025, exports reached 104 tonnes between April and December. MyJoyOnline noted that Mahama attributed a substantial increase in foreign exchange earnings to the regulation of small-scale gold exports. He stated that the Gold Board brought $10.8 billion into the country in 2025, representing an almost 100 percent increase over the $4.66 billion recorded in 2024.
Beyond export volumes, the President outlined efforts to address environmental damage caused by illegal mining. He said the government had cleared nine designated high-risk areas of illegal miners and is preparing the affected forest reserves for reclamation. Mahama mentioned that illegal mining had destroyed approximately 12,000 acres of land. To manage equipment, the government registered 6,060 excavators at ports and fitted 2,059 with tracking devices to monitor their deployment and prevent misuse in illegal operations.
The President also announced financial allocations for land restoration. He commended the allocation of 200 million Ghana Cedis for the reclamation of 5,000 acres of degraded land, with work expected to begin in 2027. Additionally, GoldBod awarded the Ghana Armed Forces a contract to reclaim 253 acres in the Tano-Nimiri Forest. Mahama also highlighted a local content policy designed to transition mining operations to indigenous companies, assuring workers that their remuneration and conditions of service would remain unchanged under the new contract mining model.