23 CSOs demand broader consultation from government on “corruption-risked” Gold for Oil programme

An Alliance of CSOs working on extractives, anti-corruption and good governance has called on the government to come clean on its Gold for Oil initiative.

The coalition made up of about 23 member organizations raised some issues about the possibility of the programme not being able to meet its set goals.

Addressing the media at a press conference held at the Mensvic Grand Hotel in Accra, on Tuesday January 31, the group’s chairperson, Dr. Steve Manteaw noted that the policy is corruption-risked due to the lack of transparency on the part of the government.

Dr. Manteaw averred that government’s lack of accountability to the public has flawed the whole process, indicating that Ghanaians and, for that matter, the various stakeholders in the industry deserve to be briefed properly.

"While we recognize the importance of reducing the demand pressure on the US dollar in order to stabilise the value of the local currency and to make petroleum products cheaper to consumers, we have serious reservations about the ability of the Gold4Oil programme to deliver these policy objectives.

"Indeed, our analysis reveals serious corruption risks associated with the programme, which can only be averted through transparency and accountability in the entire transaction chain of the Gold4Oil programme," said Dr. Manteaw.

He continued, "Some of these risks have been captured in the recently released Ghana Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (GHEITI) report, which covers 2020 but also devotes some attention to current developments in the mining, oil, and gas sectors."

The identified risks, according to the CSOs, relate to:

➤ Absence of a buyer selection criteria, with respect to the off-taker of Ghana's gold

➤ Absence of supplier selection criteria with respect to the supply of petroleum products

➤ Non-disclosure of pricing policy for Ghana's gold

➤ Non-disclosure of pricing policy for petroleum product purchases

➤ Lack of clarity on how the transaction costs under the programme would be covered

➤ Non-disclosure of the means by which the government intends to raise money to finance its gold purchases.

Also, the coalition wants to know how government was able to raise 40,000 metric tonnes of refined petroleum under the program, specifically the amount used for the transaction.

"We strongly believe that these are legitimate concerns that must be addressed in a comprehensive policy on the program, and if such a policy exists, we demand its disclosure to inform public discourse on the matter," they stressed.

The coalition reechoed the demand of the Ghana Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative for broader consultations on the programme to identify its potential impact on diverse stakeholders, including licenced gold buyers and domestic jewellery manufacturers.

"We call on Parliament to examine the transaction and ensure that aspects that fall within the realms of international transactions between the state and international third parties are brought to Parliament for approval in accordance with Article 181 (5) of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana," they petitioned.

The coalition also raised concerns about the Jubilee Oil Holding Limited (JOHL) acquisition by GNPC, the Mineral Income Investment Fund (MIIF), and the Upstream oil and gas investments.

They urged government to be accountable by involving various stakeholders including investor communities in a discourse so as to make the country more attractive to new investors.

Members of the the Alliance of CSOs working on extractives, anti-corruption, and good governance consist of Africa Center for Energy Policy, CSO Platform on Oil and Gas, IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, ISODEC, Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition, Tax Justice Coalition, Natural Resource Governance Institute, ACT Africa, iWatch Africa, KASA Initiative Ghana, and Centre for Social Impact Studies

Others include the Centre for Public Interest Law, Institute for Democratic Governance, Oil Watch Ghana, OXFAM, Third World Network, AROCHA Ghana, SEND Ghana, Centre for Democratic Development, Centre for Extractives and Development Africa, Friends of the Nation, WACAM, and also PWYP-Ghana.