Ghana

Ghana’s Criminal Code bans same-sex relations. Although this law is rarely enforced, its existence legitimizes widespread antipathy towards LGBTIQ people and contributes to harassment and extortion of LGBTIQ individuals at the hands of authorities. Politicians and influential religious figures regularly make public statements disparaging LGBTIQ people, and media coverage of LGBTIQ issues is predominantly negative. In 2021, Parliament introduced an expansive anti-LGBTIQ law which is still under consideration but has contributed to widespread human rights violations against LGBTIQ persons, as documented by Outright. Prominent anti-LGBTIQ organizations, religious leaders and the Bill's provisions espouse the need for mandatory “conversion practices” and intersex genital mutilation, exacerbating the already hostile conditions that LGBTIQ Ghanaians experience. LGBTIQ identities are often seen as immoral and deviant, leading to the regular harassment, discrimination, violence and family rejection of LGBTIQ Ghanaians.