The Minority in Parliament has filed a motion seeking a nine-member ad-hoc committee to investigate a reported $1.7 billion loss linked to the country’s gold-for-reserves programme in 2025.

The private members’ motion, filed under Parliament’s Standing Orders and Article 103 of the 1992 Constitution, was submitted by six minority lawmakers and received by the Office of the President on 20 August, according to the motion.

The move is being led by Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, the opposition New Patriotic Party’s lawmaker for Ofoase Ayirebi and ranking member of Parliament’s Economy Committee.

Five other MPs — Tweneboa Kodua Fokuo, Jerry Ahmed Shaib, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, Fred Kyei Asamoah and former finance minister Mohammed Amin Adam — are also listed as applicants.

The proposed committee would investigate “the circumstances under which a $1.7 billion USD loss was incurred in gold trade transactions between GoldBod and the Bank of Ghana for 2025” as well as the circumstances surrounding the central bank’s reported GH¢9 billion loss for the year.

The motion cites an August 2026 International Monetary Fund report which said losses from gold trades under the programme exceeded $1.7 billion, equivalent to about GH¢22 billion or 1.5 percent of Ghana’s gross domestic product.

The IMF attributed the losses to several factors, including service and assay fees, discounts on gold sold to off-takers, transaction costs and exchange-rate differences between the rate used to purchase gold and the rate used by the Bank of Ghana for accounting purposes.

The minority said it was concerned about the scale of the losses and called for an examination of the roles played by the Bank of Ghana, Ghana Gold Board, known as GoldBod, and the Minerals Commission.

The motion also raises concerns over the possible sourcing of gold from illegal mining operations, saying this could expose state institutions to risks associated with illicit mineral trading.

Ghana has struggled for years to curb illegal mining, known locally as “galamsey”, which authorities say has contributed to deforestation, water pollution and other environmental damage.

The proposed committee would examine the design and implementation of the gold-for-reserves programme, its financial performance, supply-chain due diligence and measures to prevent the purchase of illegally sourced gold.

It would also investigate the environmental, public health and wider economic consequences of the programme.

Under the motion, the committee would have powers to summon witnesses and demand documents, including confidential financial records. It could also hold public hearings, engage forensic financial experts and conduct visits to mining areas.

The committee could seek cooperation from international bodies including the IMF, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative.

It would be required to submit its report within 60 days of its first sitting, with a possible 30-day extension.

The report would include findings on responsibility and recommendations on legislative reforms, possible prosecutions, asset recovery and environmental remediation.

The motion further proposes that findings indicating criminal conduct be referred to Ghana’s Office of the Special Prosecutor, Economic and Organised Crime Office and Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice.

Parliament has not yet admitted the motion or scheduled it for debate.

The proposed inquiry comes amid growing political scrutiny of Ghana’s gold purchases and the transfer of the domestic gold purchase programme from the Bank of Ghana to GoldBod.