Business Corruption

Corruption in relation to logging is common. The World Wildlife Federation estimates that nearly 75% of logging in Ghana is illegal. According to the Energy, Environment and Development Programme 2008, illegal logging activities in Ghana include engaging in corruption to obtain forest access, to extract timber without permission or from a protected area, to harvest protected species, to extract timber in excess of agreed limits, to make fraudulent customs declarations and to evade taxes and other charges. In addition, Ghana has large reserves of a variety of minerals. Gold, diamonds, bauxite, manganese and salt are commercially exploited, along with substantial resources of iron ore. However, according to Revenue Watch Institute, transparency in the use and distribution of mineral wealth continues to be a challenge in Ghana. Although commercial gold mining has existed for over a century it has not played a leading role in guiding economic development. Further, the historic oil discovery in 2007 also raised concerns over transparency of the windfall gain that is expected to occur. Commercial extraction of oil is scheduled to start in 2011 and according to several sources such as IPS, national and international commentators are worried that Ghana's institutions are not strong enough to handle the burdens of the cash influx in a transparent way. On a positive note, however, Ghana achieved full compliant status with the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in October 2010, which ensures greater transparency and public disclosure of the revenues from its oil, gas and mining sectors. See more under the Public Anti-Corruption Initiatives' Section.

According to the US Department of State 2011, commercial fraud is especially prevalent in gold dealings and gold buyers are advised to be cautious and avoid middlemen. Potential buyers of gold and diamond are strongly advised to deal directly with the Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC) in Ghana, the sole authority through which gold and diamonds can be legally exported. Prices are based solely on the London Exchange price on the day of export, and the US Department of State 2011 notes that no discounting or negotiation of prices prior to export by the PMMC will be considered valid.

Companies report that bribery is not uncommon when dealing with environmental inspections in Ghana. For instance, Global Integrity 2009 reports that business inspections by government officials to ensure public environmental standards are frequently carried out in an arbitrary and ad-hoc manner, and bribes are often extracted from companies in return for favourable treatment or expedited processing.