Ghana Exemplifies Africa’s New Gold Rush

The gold price has doubled since 2019, to a record high of more than $2,700 per troy ounce, promising higher margins for industrial miners but also encouraging more artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM). Nearly half of the roughly 1,000 tonnes of gold produced in Africa every year is mined in this way. It is the largest source of jobs in rural Africa, save for farming, so a sustained gold boom could mean higher incomes for some very poor people. At the same time it could damage ecosystems and people’s health. Much ASM is legal, but a lot is untaxed and unregulated. In a report in May Swissaid, an NGO, estimated that the amount of smuggled gold more than doubled from 2012 to 2022. Once again, African states are missing out on the full benefits of a commodity boom.

THE ECONOMIST