Ghana's Parliament Ready for First Reading of New Anti-LGBTQI+ Bill

By Melanie Nathan, May 28, 2025

The Speaker of Ghana's Parliament, Rt. Hon. Alban Bagbin, announced yesterday during his opening speech at the 1st Sitting of the 2nd Meeting of the 1st Session of the 9th Parliament of the 4th Republic of Ghana that the 'Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill 2025', sometimes called "The Family Values Bill," and popularly known as the Anti-LGBTQ Bill, has completed all necessary processes as outlined in the Standing Orders. Bagbin stated that the Bill is now expected to be tabled for its First Reading in Parliament.

This Bill as far as we know mirrors the 2024 Bill that passed Parliament but was times out.

In Ghana, same-sex consensual sexual acts between males is already criminalized by the Colonia-era Penal Code’s Section 104 (1) (a)-(b), Section 104 (2) and Section 278.  Ghana also passed new legislation in 2024 known as The Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill,” (FVB),  which termed out during former President Nano Akufo-Ado’s term.

A violation of Section 104 is classified as a misdemeanor under Ghanaian law, and can carry up to three years in prison. The Code is incompletely enforced: It licenses arrests and so people are detained. Yet in lieu of a bribe, people are not charged, and so there is often no actual prosecution, but the resulting harms and dangers are many and abhorrent.  Police most often take bribes in exchange for releasing detainees.

On July 24, 2024, the Supreme Court of Ghana upheld this old colonial-era law. The judgment was handed down at a time when the country was engulfed in a debate over the new anti-LGBT Bill, which passed Parliament unanimously, and timed out before the former President could attest to it. There were court challenges that were delayed, unheard and finally dismissed as President Akufo-Ado's term ended. The case was dismissed because the Court did not consider it law as the President had not yet signed the Bill, keeping it in limbo, until his term ended. This caused a great amount of controversy, even dramatically impacting the presidential election that now sees Ghana with a new president, John Mahama, who promised that the minute he was presented with the same Anti-LGBTI Bill, he would sign it.  It was during this time that Ghana’s LGBTQI+ community became political pawns in a dangerous game of chess,  which continues as such, now. The law has been criticized by many countries as one of the most onerous anti-LGBTI Bills ever, being that is criminalizes, inter alia, merely identifying as LGBTTQIAA (yes it includes advocates and allies, in this questionable acronym.)

The 2025 Anti-LGBTQI Bill will likely mirror the 2024 Anti-LGBTQI Bill which went further also by criminalizing advocacy for LGBTI rights, funding of LGBTI+ activities, public displays of same-sex affection, and cross dressing and it will impact the push for conversion therapy. It also creates a duty and obligation on all people in Ghana, including parents, teachers, professionals, the legislature, executive and judiciary branches to “uphold Ghanaian proper sexual human rights and family values,” and failing to fulfill this duty is a criminal offense. It also contained an extradition clause, making all LGBTQI+ identified Ghanaians fugitives of the law. At this point we are unclear on the current content of the Bill or on the punishments it intends to legislate. It is believed that by legislating this law, Ghana's economy will suffer a dramatic negative impact which it can ill affird at this time.

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By MELANIE NATHAN, ED African Human Rights Coalition,  EXPERT WITNESS FOR LGBT ASYLUM SEEKERS FROM GHANA and other countries on the African Continent commissionermnathan@gmail.com | nathan@africanHRC.org More Reading about Ghana on this News site: https://www.africanhrc.org/single-post/politicians-claim-methodist-and-presbyterians-churches-in-ghana-are-conducting-conversion-therapies