Story perspectives

Ghana Parliament Enacts Anti-LGBTQ Law, Up to Ten Years Prison

6/3/2026

Summary

Ghana Bans LGBTQ

Ghana’s Parliament passed the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill on May 29 2026, criminalising LGBTQ+ identity.
The law sets up to three years’ jail for LGBTQ+ identification and up to ten years for promoting it.
It obliges citizens to report prohibited conduct to police, with failure punishable by imprisonment.
Human Rights Watch and other international groups condemned the legislation as endangering lives and breaching equality.

Summary

Ghana Passes Bill

Ghana’s parliament passed a bill on 3-6 June during the Conference on Family Values, following Senegal’s March 2026 act and Burkina Faso’s 2025 ban, and seeking a charter against harmful gender ideologies.
Rightify Ghana director Ebenezer Peegah reported 80 cases this year and will file a challenge citing quorum breaches and rushed readings.
Ipas warned the Accra conference is becoming a platform for lawmakers, especially Uganda and Ghana, to coordinate family-values policies.

History

Historical Context

Uganda’s anti-LGBT legislation began with a 2009 private member’s bill by MP David Bahati and culminated in the 2023 Anti-Homosexuality Act, signed by President Yoweri Museveni, which imposes life imprisonment and up to 20 years for promoting homosexuality. The 2014 law, later annulled, set a regional precedent that Ghana echoed in its 2026 Human Sexual Rights Bill.

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Ghana Bans LGBTQ

Ghana’s Parliament passed the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill on May 29 2026, criminalising LGBTQ+ identity.
The law sets up to three years’ jail for LGBTQ+ identification and up to ten years for promoting it.
It obliges citizens to report prohibited conduct to police, with failure punishable by imprisonment.
Human Rights Watch and other international groups condemned the legislation as endangering lives and breaching equality.

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