BoG Says Stronger Export Compliance Is Essential to Currency Stability

BoG Says Stronger Export Compliance Is Essential to Currency Stability

The Bank of Ghana has extended the period for repatriating export proceeds from 60 days to 120 days as part of revised Letter of Commitment guidelines intended to strengthen foreign-exchange monitoring without obstructing legitimate trade.

Second Deputy Governor Matilda Asante-Asiedu said the revised framework responds to concerns raised by exporters, banks, customs officials, freight forwarders and Free Zones companies about operational bottlenecks surrounding Ghana’s export-monitoring regime.

Speaking at the nationwide Letter of Commitment sensitisation programme in Accra, she said the central bank wanted compliance and trade facilitation to operate as mutually reinforcing objectives rather than competing demands.

“An effective LOC regime should not hinder legitimate trade,” Mrs Asante-Asiedu said. “Rather, it should create a transparent, predictable and efficient environment that supports exporters, while strengthening confidence in Ghana’s foreign-exchange management framework.”

The policy intervention comes at a critical moment for Ghana’s external sector. Exports of goods and services accounted for more than 35 per cent of gross domestic product in 2025, producing approximately US$31.2 billion in earnings and a trade surplus of about US$13.8 billion.

By June 2026, export earnings had reached approximately US$18.3 billion, supporting a trade surplus of about US$8.8 billion and contributing to the country’s international reserve position.

Those figures demonstrate the scale of the resources passing through Ghana’s export economy. They also explain why the central bank considers the timely return of proceeds a matter of national economic security rather than a narrow administrative requirement.

“Export proceeds are not merely transaction records,” Mrs Asante-Asiedu said. “They are a strategic national asset that helps stabilise our currency, finance imports, support businesses and strengthen the economy.”

The Letter of Commitment regime was introduced to monitor merchandise exports and ensure that the foreign currency earned from those shipments returns through the formal banking system. Every delayed, unaccounted-for or unrepatriated receipt reduces the foreign exchange available to meet legitimate demand and strengthen reserves.

The economic logic is straightforward. Ghana may record strong export volumes and favourable global commodity prices, but the domestic foreign-exchange market captures the full benefit only when earnings are repatriated, reported and channelled through regulated institutions.

Where proceeds remain offshore or are returned late, the country can simultaneously post a trade surplus and experience pressure in its domestic currency market. The strength of exports on paper may therefore fail to translate fully into liquidity available to importers and other businesses.

That risk is magnified by Ghana’s export concentration. Gold, crude oil and cocoa generated more than 80 per cent of export earnings in 2025. Stronger monitoring can protect inflows from these sectors, but concentration also leaves the external position exposed to commodity-price movements, production disruptions and sector-specific policy failures.

The revised LOC framework consequently matters, but it cannot substitute for export diversification. Ghana needs to ensure the return of existing proceeds while expanding non-traditional exports, value-added production and services capable of generating more stable foreign-exchange income.

Mrs Asante-Asiedu said stakeholder consultations had identified difficulties involving LOC retirement, exchange-rate considerations, third-party payment arrangements, retention accounts, regional settlements, Free Zones transactions and legitimate shortfalls in export receipts.

Participants broadly welcomed the extension of the repatriation period to 120 days. The change gives exporters more time to accommodate payment schedules, shipping arrangements and commercial realities that may make the previous 60-day requirement difficult to meet.

However, a longer deadline creates a corresponding need for more effective monitoring. Flexibility should reduce unnecessary breaches by legitimate businesses, but it must not create a wider window for non-compliance or the diversion of export earnings.

The revised guidelines seek to establish clearer responsibilities across the export chain and cover LOC generation, repatriation, extension procedures, advance payments, retention policies and non-conformity cases.

The central bank is also strengthening data management, increasing automation and upgrading its operational platforms. These improvements could prove more important than tougher rules alone. Export transactions involve several institutions, and fragmented systems create delays, conflicting records and opportunities for avoidance.

Implementation will determine whether the reforms improve foreign-exchange integrity or simply add another layer of administration. Banks must support exporters efficiently, Customs must ensure accurate documentation, freight forwarders must maintain reliable records and regulators must coordinate rather than operate in isolation.

The address also linked export reform to changes in international payment infrastructure. China remains one of Ghana’s most important trading partners, and the introduction of the China Cross-Border Interbank Payment System offers businesses a channel for settling eligible transactions directly in renminbi.

Stanbic Bank Ghana has become the first domestic bank approved by the Bank of Ghana to provide clients with direct access to CIPS. GCB Bank is pursuing a similar arrangement.

Direct yuan settlement could reduce dependence on intermediary banks, lower transaction costs and accelerate payments for businesses trading with China. It may also reduce the need to route every transaction through the United States dollar, although firms must still manage currency and counterparty risks carefully.

For exporters, wider payment options could improve access to Chinese customers and make settlement more efficient. For regulators, the challenge will be integrating new channels into the same transparent monitoring architecture required under the LOC regime.

The revised LOC rules therefore represent more than a procedural adjustment. They are an attempt to answer a persistent policy question: how can Ghana capture the full domestic benefit of its export success without imposing controls that make its exporters less competitive?

The answer will depend on proportionality. Businesses that comply should encounter predictable procedures, rapid approvals and practical dispute resolution. Deliberate non-compliance should attract credible enforcement. Regulators, meanwhile, must publish clear standards and remain accountable for processing delays within their own systems.

Ghana’s trade surpluses provide a valuable external buffer, but their stabilising power depends on what happens after goods leave the country. When proceeds return promptly through formal channels, they support reserves, imports, investment and currency stability.

The 120-day window recognises commercial reality. The stronger monitoring, automation and institutional coordination promised by the Bank of Ghana must now ensure that greater flexibility produces better compliance rather than weaker control.