African countries are seeing the value of their gold reserves surge as international bullion prices climb, strengthening central banks’ balance sheets and renewing interest in gold as an alternative to dollar-denominated assets amid currency volatility and global economic uncertainty.
The combined dollar value of gold reserves, based on available data for eight African countries, increased by 113.5 percent to $66.6 billion in the second quarter of 2026 from $31.2 billion in the same period of 2023, according to a BusinessDay analysis of World Gold Council data. The eight countries tracked are South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana, Mauritius, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Kenya.
However, the increase in value has not been matched by a comparable rise in the amount of gold held. Physical gold holdings across the eight countries edged up to 509.2 tonnes in Q2 from 505 tonnes three years earlier, suggesting that higher international gold prices accounted for most of the increase in their reserves’ dollar value. Gold averaged about $1,955 per troy ounce in 2023, compared with around $4,166 recently, more than doubling in value.
The rally has significantly increased the dollar value of African central banks’ gold reserves, even as the physical quantity held across the eight countries tracked remained broadly stable. The figures show that the gold rally is increasing the value of African central banks’ existing holdings as governments look to diversify reserve assets, strengthen external buffers and reduce exposure to currency and geopolitical risks and improve the value of their currencies.
Algeria recorded the largest gold reserves by value at $22.5 billion, followed by Egypt at $16.8 billion and South Africa at $16.3 billion. The combined gold reserves accounted for 20.6 percent of the countries’ reported gross reserves of $322.6 billion in Q2. This compares with the 10 percent in the second quarter of 2023.