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STORY: This is Ghana's first commercial gold refinery.

It has been opened in the capital Accra as Africa's leading gold producer seeks to maximise the value it gets out of a precious metal it has been mining for centuries.

At an opening ceremony on Thursday (August 8). Vice President Mahamadu Bawumia said the launch marked a "new era" that would help contain gold smuggling and raise national earnings.

"Between 2018 and 2023, Ghana's average annual gold production was 3.92 million ounces, that is 122.5 tons. All this gold was exported unrefined, resulting in lost revenue."

The Royal Ghana Gold Refinery has a capacity to process 400 kilograms of gold per day.

It will source from small-scale and artisanal miners, before acquiring licences to process gold from larger operators.

A sizeable amount of Ghana's gold output from unregulated artisanal miners has previously been smuggled outside the country.

Traditional ruler of the Akyem tribe in eastern Ghana, Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin, said it was important to "own our own resources."

"We're poor because we were exploited. So when I got here and listened to all the speakers, I just took a big sigh of relief and said, finally, finally, we're here."

The refinery is a partnership between India's Rosy Royal Minerals and Ghana's central bank.

Bawumia, who is running for the presidency in December, said it will employ 80 to 120 people directly and create 500 indirect jobs.