Ghana’s gold reserves have soared to 32.99 tonnes as of June 2025, marking a significant milestone in the Bank of Ghana’s ongoing strategy to strengthen the country’s financial resilience and diversify its foreign reserves.

Fresh data from the central bank reveals a steady month-on-month increase — up from 31.37 tonnes in April and 32.16 tonnes in May. This growth represents a dramatic leap from the 8.78 tonnes recorded in May 2023, nearly quadrupling in just over a year.

The upward trend underscores the Bank of Ghana’s commitment to increasing its gold holdings as part of a broader move to reduce dependency on traditional foreign currencies, especially the U.S. dollar.

As the continent’s top gold producer, Ghana has also intensified efforts to formalise its small-scale mining sector. This initiative aims to retain more domestically mined gold for national use, supporting long-term economic development.

Ghana’s gold accumulation strategy aligns with a global trend among central banks, many of which are turning to gold as a hedge against currency volatility and rising geopolitical uncertainties.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a $474.6 million loan to South Africa to help upgrade its transport and energy infrastructure. This marks the second major infrastructure loan for the country in recent weeks, following a $1.5 billion agreement with the World Bank in June.

The AfDB’s financial support is aimed at enhancing energy efficiency and implementing critical rail sector reforms, the bank said in a statement on Tuesday.

South Africa, Africa’s most industrialized economy, has been grappling with persistent power outages, deteriorating railway networks, and heavily congested ports for over a decade. These issues have severely impacted key sectors such as mining and automobile manufacturing, stalling economic growth.

The AfDB loan is part of a broader international financing package to support South Africa’s infrastructure revival. Additional contributions include €500 million ($590.75 million) from German development bank KfW, up to $200 million from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and $150 million from the OPEC Fund for International Development.

The combined effort signals a coordinated international commitment to revitalizing South Africa’s critical infrastructure and supporting long-term economic stability.

MTN Ghana has been hit by a major technical glitch that disrupted its data bundle services on Monday, July 1, 2025—the same day its new, enhanced data offers were scheduled to take effect.

In a notice to customers, the telecom giant acknowledged the service failure, stating that the issue had temporarily halted all data bundle purchases, including the application of its promised 15% bonus data.

“Whilst implementing the data offer, which will provide 15% additional volume of data from today July 1, 2025, MTN experienced a major technical issue which has affected data bundle purchases, including the data volume offer,” the company said. “As a result, customers are temporarily unable to purchase data bundles.”

MTN apologised for the inconvenience and assured customers that its technical teams are working swiftly to fix the issue. “We recognise the importance of staying connected and sincerely apologise for the inconvenience this may cause. Further updates will be provided,” the statement added.

The disruption coincides with the nationwide rollout of improved data bundles by all three major telecom operators—MTN, Telecel Ghana, and AT Ghana—following a new directive from the Ministry of Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations.

As part of the new policy, MTN—designated as a Significant Market Power (SMP)—was set to reinstate its GH¢399 bundle to offer 214 gigabytes of data, a significant increase from the previously reduced GH¢350 bundle which offered just 92.88 gigabytes. Additionally, all MTN data packages were expected to receive a 15% boost in value.

Meanwhile, Telecel Ghana and AT Ghana have successfully rolled out their improved packages. AirtelTigo users now enjoy 236 gigabytes for GH¢400, up from 195 GB, while Telecel’s GH¢400 package has jumped from 90 gigabytes to 250 gigabytes. Both companies also applied a 10% across-the-board increase on other data bundles.

Communications Minister Samuel Nartey George, who introduced the policy in June, said it was the result of in-depth consultations aimed at offering consumers better value while preserving the telecom industry’s viability.

“These increases come at a cost to the network operators, but I’m pleased that our collaborative efforts are producing real benefits for Ghanaians,” he stated at a press briefing on June 10.

He also directed the National Communications Authority (NCA) to ensure full compliance with the new bundle mandates and to impose penalties for any breaches. Additionally, the NCA is set to conduct quarterly billing integrity tests from Q3 2025 to verify data credit accuracy and ensure proper rollover processes.

While MTN works to restore its systems, subscribers of Telecel and AT Ghana are expected to continue enjoying their upgraded data services without any disruption. The government also continues discussions with the Ministries of Finance and Energy to address taxes and utility costs that contribute to high data prices.