President John Dramani Mahama wants Ghana to establish a dedicated gold trading and jewellery market modelled on Dubai’s internationally renowned Gold Souk, with a kilometre-long stretch of road reserved exclusively for gold jewellery retail, Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) Chief Executive Officer Sammy Gyamfi has revealed.
Speaking in a radio interview, Gyamfi said GoldBod Jewellery will lead the initiative, which he described as a direct presidential vision for turning Ghana’s gold endowment into a tourism and commercial landmark.
“President Mahama wants us to have our own mini gold souk like Dubai has. Dubai does not have gold, but they have a gold souk where people trade in gold jewellery,” Gyamfi said. “He wants us to create a golden kilometre and on that kilometre stretch of road, we will be selling only gold jewellery, so that if anyone comes to Ghana and wants to see our gold, they can be taken there.”
The proposal is an extension of GoldBod’s broader mandate to add value to Ghana’s gold before it leaves the country, rather than continuing to export primarily raw or minimally processed material. Ghana is the world’s largest gold producer by volume in Africa and among the top producers globally, yet the country currently captures little of the downstream commercial value that gold-based retail and tourism generate in markets such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Dubai’s Gold Souk, located in the Deira district, is one of the most visited retail destinations in the world and trades an estimated ten tonnes of gold jewellery daily, drawing millions of tourists and buyers annually despite the UAE having no domestic gold mining industry of its own.
The proposal aligns with Ghana’s wider push under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) framework to shift from commodity export dependence toward higher-value manufacturing and services. If implemented, a Ghanaian Gold Souk could serve as both a domestic retail anchor and a destination for African diaspora visitors, conference delegates, and regional buyers who currently travel to Dubai, Istanbul, or Antwerp for gold purchases.
No implementation timeline or location has been announced. GoldBod is expected to outline further details as the plan develops.
