His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama has announced government's decision to provide an incentive to members of the general public who serve as whistleblowers to aid clamping down on illicit gold-smuggling activities in the country.

At the launch of a special Ghana Gold Board task force on July 8, the president noted that informants are eligible to receive 10 percent of the seized gold in cash value.

"So whistleblowers, get ready. If you blow the whistle on anybody and gold is retrieved or cash is received, you’d get 10 percent of the value of both," he said.

President Mahama further cautioned the task force against abusing their office to undertake unlawful activities.

"To the task force, let me be clear. Abuse of your authority will not be tolerated. If any of you is found engaging in misconduct, you will face immediate sanctions, and this could include dismissal, prosecution, and forfeiture of your entitlement," he added.

The task force will be given a special mandate with specific powers as police officers to wage war against smuggling and all forms of illegal gold trading activities in the country.

According to the Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Goldbod, Sammy Gyamfi, this will save the government from any leakages in revenue mobilisation in the sector, helping to generate and invest revenue for economic development.

“(This will) help the state combat and defeat the phenomenon of gold smuggling, the canker of illegal gold trading, and price disruptions that deprive the state of the needed revenue, profit, and the needed forex for our economy and the development of our country,” he announced.

He thus cautioned traders to secure the appropriate licence to engage in any form of gold trading in the country, saying, “But for those who are hell bent on trading illegally without the licenses, we are serving notice that we are coming after you”.

Earlier, the GoldBod CEO on June 5 also warned that persons who trade without licenses would be prosecuted, adding that his outfit takes no bribes before the said licenses are issued.

During a meeting with the Chamber of Licensed Gold Buyers, Mr Gyamfi stated that "I don’t take or demand bribes before I issue a licence."

The acting CEO noted that the process for registering has been made seamless and is devoid of corruption. "We have removed the human interface element, and so there is no corruption, bribery, inducements, or favouritism. It is a very transparent and competitive process, and once you qualify, you get the license," he added.

Lauding his outfit’s results-oriented reforms and initiatives since his takeover as CEO, Sammy Gyamfi, during a media engagement, revealed that GoldBod has exceeded the $5 billion mark in gold export value for the first half of 2025, surpassing the $4.6 billion recorded for the entire year of 2024.

He expressed optimism that GoldBod would hit the 60-tonne export mark by the end of July 2025, driven by stronger compliance, improved oversight, and the streamlined licensing regime under the Ghana Gold Board Act, 2025 (Act 1140).

“In the whole of 2024, gold exports stood at 66 tons with an export value of $4.6 billion. We have done only six months, and yet we have crossed the $4.6 billion. We have gone beyond $5 billion, and in terms of volumes, we have done 50 tons and over, and we are optimistic that by the end of next month, we will have hit 60 tons,” he said.

According to Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, "at the peak of our economic crisis in 2022, 60 tonnes of gold worth an estimated $1.2 billion at the time, left Ghana through illegal channels."

It is estimated that about 600 tonnes of gold have been smuggled out of the country in the last ten years, valued at over $12 billion.