Civil Society group Lands and Mines Watch Ghana has slammed the minority in Parliament over what it describes as a deliberate distortion of facts regarding the engagement of Bawa Rock Limited by the Gold Board (GoldBod) as an aggregator.
The Minority, led by the Ranking Member on Parliament’s Economy Committee, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, had accused GoldBod of creating a monopoly by licensing Bawa Rock Limited as a “sole aggregator”. However, in a press release, Lands and Mines Watch Ghana dismissed the claim as misleading, politically charged, and lacking critical industry context.
According to the group, Bawa Rock Limited is not a newly created entity positioned to exploit a policy shift, but a long-established indigenous firm with operational history in Ghana’s extractive sector. The organisation notes that the company has made deliberate investments in infrastructure, personnel, and systems aligned with international best practices in precious minerals trading.
“Any serious national conversation about Bawa Rock’s role under GoldBod must begin with facts, history, and capacity—not political soundbites,” the statement stressed.
The group explained that the GoldBod system provides for multiple categories of licensed operators, all operating under uniform pricing, and therefore does not allow for monopoly practices. It stressed that only GoldBod, as a state agency, operates as a monopoly under the framework.
According to the group, Bawa Rock’s licence is backed by the GoldBod Act, 2025 (Act 1140) and aligns with national efforts to improve traceability, reduce smuggling, and formalise gold trading. It cautioned that unsubstantiated political claims risk undermining indigenous investment and reforms in the gold sector.
