The president declined to sign into law a bill passed in parliament to proscribe accusations of witchcraft. A bill to further criminalize LGBTI people progressed in parliament. A partial abolition of the death penalty was revoked. The rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly continued to be threatened, and authorities used excessive force to disperse protests. The right to health of pregnant women was threatened by lack of access to medical facilities. Environmental activists decried the pollution generated by second-hand clothing imports.

Women’s and girls’ rights

Female genital mutilation (FGM) continued to be practised but there was progress in changing attitudes. In April, 15 former “female circumcisers” in Wa renounced FGM while traditional leaders in the city denounced and committed to help combat the practice.

LGBTI peoples’ rights

On 7 July, the parliament unanimously approved the 2021 Promotion of Appropriate Sexual Rights and Family Values bill during its second reading, taking it one step further to becoming law. The bill further criminalized LGBTI people and introduced prison sentences for anyone expressing support or “sympathy” towards LGBTI people. LGBTI rights activists expressed concerns over their safety should the bill be passed. In the same month, the Supreme Court dismissed a legal challenge to block parliament from passing the bill.

Freedom of expression and assembly

Four years after the murder of Ghanaian investigative journalist Ahmed Divela, the investigation was ongoing, and no one had been brought to justice.In April, a coalition of media associations asked for a repeal of Section 76 of the Electronic Communications Act and Section 208 of the Criminal and Other Offences Act, arguing that these laws had been “weaponized” to arrest several journalists and restrict the right to freedom of expression. Reporters Without Borders ranked Ghana 62nd among the 180 countries surveyed in its 2023 World Press Freedom Index, down two places from 2022.

Female genital mutilation (FGM) continued to be practised but there was progress in changing attitudes. In April, 15 former “female circumcisers” in Wa renounced FGM while traditional leaders in the city denounced and committed to help combat the practice

In September, the police filed an injunction to prevent a planned protest over the high cost of living taking place, from 21 to 23 September, outside the presidential palace in the capital, Accra. The police arrested at least 49 protesters for unlawful assembly when the protest went ahead on 21 September, releasing them on bail the same day.

Excessive use of force

On 7 March, in Ashaiman, the military used excessive force, including beating and kicking people, while investigating the murder of one of their colleagues. During the operation, Ghana Armed Forces detained 184 people. The deputy defence minister apologized that innocent people were caught up in the operation. Parliament’s Committee on Defence and the Interior stated that it had conducted investigations but, at the end of the year, no report had been published.

Right to health

In February, the Ghana Health Service revealed that 27 pregnant women in Bawku municipality had died between 2021 and 2022 due to their inability to access medical services. While some were unable to get to the hospital in time, others died due to staff shortages.In April, Ghana became the first country to approve a malaria vaccine developed by Oxford University.

Right to a healthy environment

Environmental activists warned that the government’s plan to import liquefied natural gas under a 17-year agreement would lead to more use of carbon and delay the transition to cleaner energy.

Environmental activists, clothes traders and fishermen denounced the pollution created by used textiles coming into the country from abroad. Fast fashion clothes donated from overseas continued to find their way to second-hand markets such as Kantamanto in Accra, with huge volumes then being discarded as waste due to poor quality and ending up on the beaches of Accra and in the Odaw river, the Korle Lagoon or the sea.