Gay rights laws in Ghana sit on two tracks. A colonial-era provision in the Criminal Code already makes consensual same-sex conduct between men a misdemeanor punishable by up to three years in prison. On top of that, parliament has twice passed a sweeping bill that would criminalize LGBTQ+ identity, advocacy, and funding, with sentences as long as ten years. As of mid-2026, that bill has not been signed into law.
What the Current Criminal Code Punishes
The operative statute is Section 104 of the Criminal Code, 1960 (Act 29). It prohibits “unnatural carnal knowledge,” defined as sexual intercourse with a person in an unnatural manner or with an animal. Subsection (1)(b) covers consensual conduct between adults aged sixteen or older and classifies it as a misdemeanor.1Police Human Rights Resources. Criminal Code, 1960 (Act 29) – Chapter 6 Sexual Offences Under Ghanaian law, a misdemeanor carries a maximum of three years’ imprisonment.
The statute does not distinguish between private and public conduct. Non-consensual conduct under the same section is treated much more severely: Section 104(1)(a) classifies it as a first-degree felony carrying five to twenty-five years.1Police Human Rights Resources. Criminal Code, 1960 (Act 29) – Chapter 6 Sexual Offences
The language targets the act rather than the identity of the people involved, and the provision is traditionally applied to male same-sex conduct. Female same-sex relations are not explicitly covered in Section 104, though other broadly worded offenses have occasionally been invoked. Formal prosecutions are relatively uncommon compared with how often the law is used as a tool of harassment. Police and local officials have relied on Section 104 to justify arrests, detentions, and threats against people perceived to be gay, even where no sexual act is alleged.
The Pending Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill
The Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill first passed parliament in February 2024 and reaches well beyond Section 104. Where the Criminal Code targets a specific act, the bill reaches into identity, expression, and association. A person who publicly identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer faces up to three years in prison.
Advocacy is criminalized separately. Anyone who promotes, sponsors, or funds LGBTQ+ causes faces imprisonment, which the original 2024 version set at three to five years.2Modern Ghana. Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill Producing or distributing supportive materials and providing financial resources to LGBTQ+ organizations are covered. The bill also creates a duty to report: citizens are expected to notify police if they suspect someone of violating its provisions. Running or taking part in support groups, or providing social services to LGBTQ+ people, falls within its reach. The bill defines “family values” around heterosexual unions and sets that framework as the only recognized domestic structure.
Conversion Therapy and Gender-Affirming Care
Clause 12 covers what the bill calls “conversion therapy,” defined as any practice, treatment, or service that seeks to change, suppress, or reinforce a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. Performing it carries one to three years.2Modern Ghana. Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill
The word “reinforce” cuts in an unusual direction. Most conversion-therapy bans target attempts to change a person’s orientation or identity against their will. By also banning practices that reinforce gender identity, this clause effectively criminalizes gender-affirming medical care. A doctor providing hormone therapy to a transgender patient could face prosecution. Amnesty International and other human rights organizations have described the bill’s medical provisions as potentially amounting to cruel or degrading treatment, particularly regarding intersex children, whom the bill envisions being medically directed toward a binary sex designation.
Where the Bill Stands in 2026
Former President Nana Akufo-Addo never signed the 2024 version, and it lapsed at the end of his term. After John Dramani Mahama won the presidency, the bill was reintroduced as a private member’s bill and passed parliament again. The reintroduced text keeps the core provisions, raises the maximum penalty for promotion and advocacy to ten years, and adds exemptions for legal professionals, media workers, and healthcare professionals acting in their official capacity.
Mahama pledged during his 2024 campaign that he would sign the bill. He has not done so as of mid-2026. In international settings he has distanced himself from it, calling it a non-government initiative and pointing to the ongoing democratic process. The financial stakes are substantial. Ghana’s finance ministry has estimated the country could lose roughly $3.8 billion in World Bank financing over five to six years if the bill becomes law, which would also put a $3 billion IMF lending program at risk. Uganda’s World Bank suspension after passing a similar law offers a recent precedent.
Supreme Court Challenges to the Bill
Two constitutional challenges reached the Supreme Court of Ghana. In Richard Sky v. Parliament of Ghana, the plaintiff argued the bill was unconstitutional before presidential assent. A separate case was brought by Dr. Amanda Odoi against the Speaker of Parliament. On December 18, 2024, the Court unanimously dismissed both, holding that judicial review was premature because the bill was not yet law and that its authority to assess constitutional validity applies only to fully enacted legislation.3Human Dignity Trust. Richard Sky v Parliament of Ghana and Another
The practical effect is that the bill’s constitutionality cannot be tested until a president signs it. If Mahama eventually assents, a fresh challenge could proceed.
Constitutional Rights That Might Apply
Ghana’s 1992 Constitution contains protections that, on paper, could limit anti-LGBTQ+ laws. Article 18 protects privacy in the home and personal life, and Article 21 guarantees freedom of association and assembly.4ConstitutionNet. The Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, 1992
Article 17 addresses equality and non-discrimination. It provides that all persons are equal before the law and prohibits discrimination on grounds of gender, race, colour, ethnic origin, religion, creed, or social or economic status.5Laws Ghana. Article 17 – Equality and Freedom From Discrimination Sexual orientation is not listed. Whether the provision reaches it has never been resolved by Ghanaian courts. The Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) has publicly stated that the Constitution mandates protection of LGBTQ+ persons, but that position has not been tested through binding judicial interpretation.
These rights are not absolute. Article 17(4) permits parliament to enact laws “reasonably necessary” for certain purposes, and the broader constitutional framework allows restriction of individual freedoms when justified by public interest or public morality. That public-morality exception is the legal doorway through which the state justifies both Section 104 and the pending bill. A court evaluating a future challenge would need to decide whether criminalizing private conduct and personal identity is “reasonably justified in a democratic society,” a standard the Constitution sets but has not applied to this question.4ConstitutionNet. The Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, 1992
Workplace Protections
Ghana’s Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651) prohibits employment discrimination on grounds of race, colour, gender, religion, political opinion, national extraction, social origin, and disability. Sexual orientation is not listed. Section 14 does include a catch-all extending protection against discrimination based on “any other characteristic which has the effect of nullifying or impairing the enjoyment of employment opportunities or benefits on an equal basis.”6BWC Implementation. Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651)
Whether that clause covers sexual orientation has not been authoritatively decided. Under Section 62, an employer dismissing a worker must show just cause, and a termination that falls outside the enumerated fair grounds is unfair. In theory, a worker dismissed solely because of sexual orientation could argue the dismissal fails that test. In practice, bringing such a claim would require the employee to disclose the very characteristic that exposes them to prosecution under Section 104. That bind leaves the Labour Act’s protections largely theoretical for LGBTQ+ workers.
Advocacy Organizations and Registration
Groups working on LGBTQ+ issues face barriers at the registration stage. The Companies Act, 2019 (Act 992) and related legislation govern the formation of non-governmental organizations, and the Registrar-General’s office has used its discretion to deny or revoke registration for groups whose stated purposes are deemed to conflict with public policy or to facilitate activities criminalized under the Criminal Code.7Ghana Investment Promotion Centre. Companies Act, 2019 (Act 992)
Without valid registration, an organization cannot open bank accounts, receive grants, or operate openly. Police and national security forces have cited the absence of registration to justify shutting down community centers and advocacy offices. The pending bill would turn what is currently an administrative barrier into a criminal one by explicitly prohibiting the funding and promotion of LGBTQ+ causes. International donors supporting such organizations could face prosecution under the bill’s funding provisions, though the reintroduced version reportedly includes exemptions for legal and healthcare professionals.
International Treaty Obligations
Ghana ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in September 2000.8United Nations Treaty Body Database. Ratification Status for Ghana The ICCPR requires state parties to guarantee rights without discrimination and to protect individuals from arbitrary interference with privacy. The UN Human Rights Committee has consistently read these provisions to prohibit criminalizing consensual same-sex conduct. Ghana is also party to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which guarantees non-discrimination and individual dignity. Neither treaty has produced an enforceable ruling compelling Ghana to repeal Section 104 or withdraw the pending bill. Ghana’s position at periodic international reviews has been that domestic cultural and moral values justify keeping the Criminal Code provisions in place.