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During this period, gold transactions would only be carried out in Ghana cedis, the local currency, and priced based on the Bank of Ghana rates.

To add to the woes of Ghanaians, their currency, the cedi, has lost 70% of its value in the past eight years.

Electricity was restored later in the day after parliament paid 13m cedi and made a pledge to settle the remaining debt within a week, Mr Boateng added.

The idea is to reduce pressure on the weak Ghana cedi and bring in cheaper fuel in exchange for gold.

Before interest, he said, the back payments add up to 50 billion cedis, roughly $4.4 billion.