Whether Ghana’s parliament will enact an anti-LGBT+ law after Ghana’s Ministry of Finance expressed opposition and President Nana Akufo-Addo said he would await the Supreme Court’s ruling on the law’s constitutionality. There are serious doubts.
Ghanaian parliament passed a bill last week that would ban individuals who identify as LGBT+ from being sentenced to up to three years in prison, and individuals who “promote” LGBT+ activities from up to five years in prison, but economic policymakers and human rights activists said I hope this bill is similarly blocked.
In a document leaked to the media, Ghana’s Ministry of Finance said the move would put $3.8 billion in World Bank funds at risk over the next five to six years and would force Ghana to cut its 2024 budget by $600 million. He suggested that it would happen. The country’s Financial Stability Fund, which provides liquidity to Ghana’s banks in an effort to improve macroeconomic stability, also needs to be cut by $250 million, the ministry argued.
Ghana, already facing severe economic challenges after defaulting on almost all of its external debt in December 2022, is a beneficiary of an ongoing $3 billion IMF program, of which $600 million worth The second tranche was executed in January. This was expected to enable him to raise $550 million from the World Bank.
Further turmoil is likely to occur if future World Bank support is withdrawn. The World Bank has previously stopped funding African countries deemed to be in decline in human rights. Last year, the bank stopped providing new funding to Uganda after the country criminalized “promoting homosexuality” and introduced the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality.” However, the Washington-based agency has not yet commented on Ghana’s anti-LGBT+ bill.
The Treasury also predicted that the bill would have an “adverse impact on Ghana’s foreign exchange reserves and exchange rate stability” and would have “dire consequences for debt restructuring and Ghana’s long-term debt.”
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The proposed bill also cannot come into force unless it is signed by President Nana Akufo-Addo. He has since said he would not sign the bill until the Supreme Court rules on its constitutionality, a legal process that could take until the end of the year.
Mr Akufo-Addo had previously said he would pass the bill if supported by a majority of Ghanaians, but recently said: “That is not the case.” [human rights] Setbacks will be considered or brought about. ”
Genevieve Partington, Amnesty International’s country director for Ghana, said: african business She said she hopes the bill will be blocked. This is because, despite the views expressed by the Ghanaian parliament, both the president and the government appear to be opposed to the move.
“Our president is himself a human rights activist and lawyer, and I know he is aware of the consequences that could befall Ghana if he signs this bill,” she says. .
“The Treasury Department, the Attorney General’s Office, and the Human Rights and Administrative Justice Committee all oppose this bill.”
“It’s good that the agency is declaring this bill a non-starter,” Partington added. “We hope the bill is not signed.”
However, she added that regardless of whether the bill is ultimately enshrined in law, LGBT+ individuals face increased discrimination.
“Since this bill was passed, there have been instances of violence against members of the LGBT+ community, with people being beaten and extorted for money because they are suspected of being part of the LGBT community.”
Mr Partington also fears that the bill, if passed, could spark broader anti-LGBT+ trends within West Africa.
“The challenge here is that Ghana has traditionally been a pioneer in human rights in the region,” she says. “I can only imagine what the rest of West Africa will do if this bill passes. Perhaps they will follow suit.”