Alhaji Rashid Bawa Namoro has emerged as a central figure in Ghana’s unfolding debate over gold aggregation and state gold purchases.
Alhaji is the owner of Bawa-Rock Limited, the company reported to have been licensed as the sole aggregator authorized by GoldBod to purchase gold from artisanal and small-scale miners on behalf of the state.
To date, the Tang Palace based Alhaji Bawa has bought over US$10Billion
Under the arrangement, Bawa-Rock Ltd is said to serve as the exclusive conduit through which artisanal gold is aggregated before being transferred to GoldBod and, ultimately, to the Bank of Ghana for reserve purposes. The scale and exclusivity of this mandate have drawn intense public and parliamentary scrutiny.
The Minority argue that concentrating aggregation rights in a single private entity is a monopoly in a sector traditionally sustained by multiple buyers and competitive pricing.
They contend that such a structure risks rent-seeking, weakens transparency, and exposes miners to unfavorable pricing and limited market choice.
Questions have also been raised about the process that led to Bawa-Rock Ltd’s selection, the criteria applied, and the company’s beneficial ownership structure.
