Haste left Ghana with flawed anti-LGBTQ+ bill, Speaker admits

He still wants the cruel measure enacted — after it’s fixed.

The LGBTQ+ rights advocacy group Rightify Ghana last week reported on X about the status of Ghana’s harsh anti-LGBTQ+ bill, which is stuck in procedural limbo.  A modestly edited version of that article, with additional background information, is here:

Alban Bagbin, the Speaker of Ghana’s Parliament, acknowledged [last week] that Ghana’s Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2025, popularly known as the anti-LGBTQ+ bill, was rushed through Parliament and contains errors.

But he’s still a supporter of it, insisting that the legislation will be passed by consensus after further consideration.

[Anti-LGBTQ hardliners have complained that the original bill was weakened by amendments that were adopted before it was passed on May 29.

LGBTQ community members fear that Parliament may add harsher punishments to the already cruel version of the anti-LGBTQ+ bill, which has neither been rejected nor signed into law by President John Mahama.]

Speaking at an Institute of Public Relations conference in eastern Ghana, Bagbin said the bill should be treated as a matter of national consensus rather than partisan politics, given what he described as its significance to Ghanaians.

Bagbin said  he objected to the bill’s passage at the last minute without his involvement, arguing that the process had compromised the opportunity for proper consideration.

He said subsequent reviews had identified several mistakes arising from last-minute amendments.

“We have identified a few mistakes because of the last-minute patch. And therefore, the next meeting will come back for a second consideration and we will pass it,” Bagbin said.

[He previously stated that would happen in July, then in August, but it has not happened.]

He further insisted that the legislation would remain a priority for as long as he continued to hold influence over the parliamentary process, declaring that it would become the law of the land despite opposition to its passage.

Bagbin also praised Samuel Nartey George, the Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram and Minister for Communications, Digital Technology and Innovations, for his advocacy in support of the legislation.

He described George’s contributions to debates on LGBTQ+ issues, including on international platforms, as articulate, impactful and effective in presenting Ghana’s position.

The Speaker’s comments signal his continued commitment to the bill, while raising questions about the legislative process, the identified errors and the prospects for further parliamentary scrutiny.

Bagbin’s remarks come amid continued debate over the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2025, and the legislative steps required for its further consideration.

His acknowledgment of errors in the bill, alongside his insistence that it should ultimately be passed, places renewed attention on the next stage of parliamentary deliberations and the extent to which further scrutiny may affect its final form.

Editor’s note: Provisions of Ghana’s anti-LGBTQ+ bill, as passed May 29, are below.

What’s in Ghana’s anti-LGBTQ+ bill

The latest version of the bill calls for three years in prison for anyone who identifies as (“holds out as”) LGBTQ.  It would allow LGBTQ people to avoid prison if they submit to counseling to try to change their sexual orientation or gender identity.

The bill would also impose a three-year prison term for people who:

• Participate in gender-reassignment surgery;
• Enter into a same-sex marriage; or
• Attend a same-sex wedding.

It would ban “funding, sponsorship or promotion” of LGBTQ activity, with prison terms ranging from three to five years

It would introduce a “duty to report” prohibited LGBTQ acts to a police officer or other authorities, with violators facing up to three years behind bars.

It would declare media, legal, and healthcare professionals who report on, represent or treat LGBTQ+ people to be exempt from prosecution for those activities.

It would keep Ghana’s current law that provides a three-year prison sentence for same-sex intimacy.