Parliament of Ghana has officially programmed the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2025 — popularly referred to as the anti-LGBTQ bill — for its First Reading today, Tuesday, October 21, 2025, as the House reconvenes from recess.
The bill, which has been reintroduced by ten Members of Parliament from both the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), marks one of the few instances of bipartisan collaboration on a major social issue in recent years.
Confirmed Sponsors and Party Affiliations
The bill is sponsored by ten MPs, comprising eight men and two women, drawn from both sides of the political divide:
National Democratic Congress (NDC):
- Mr. Samuel Nartey George – MP for Ningo-Prampram (Male)
- Mr. Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzra – MP for Ho West (Male)
- Mrs. Helen Adjoa Ntoso – MP for Krachi West (Female)
- Ms. Rita Naa Odoley Sowah – MP for Dadekotopon (Female)
New Patriotic Party (NPP):
5. Mr. John Ntim Fordjour – MP for Assin South (Male)
6. Mr. Nurideen Muhammed Mummuni – MP for Nalerigu/Gambaga (Male)
7. Mr. Vincent Ekow Assafuah – MP for Old Tafo (Male)
8. Mr. Alhassan Tampuli Sulemana – MP for Gushegu (Male)
9. Dr. Tiah Abdul Kabiru Mahama – MP for Walewale (Male)
10. Mr. Anthony Mmieh – MP for Odotobri (Male)
Gender breakdown: 8 men, 2 women
Party breakdown: 6 NPP, 4 NDC
Background
The Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill was first introduced in 2021 and was passed by Parliament in February 2024 after over three years of intense national debate and international scrutiny. However, the bill failed to secure presidential assent before the dissolution of the 8th Parliament, leading it to lapse automatically under Ghana’s legislative procedures.
In February this year, the same group of MPs resubmitted the bill in the 9th Parliament, seeking to restart the legislative process. Today’s First Reading will formally reintroduce it, setting the stage for further deliberation.
Next Steps
Following the First Reading, the bill will be referred to the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee for scrutiny, during which memoranda from the public, experts, and stakeholders will be received. It will then proceed through Second and Third Readings, the Consideration Stage, and eventual voting before potentially being sent to the President for assent.
Public and International Reactions
The bill has drawn widespread condemnation from human rights groups and sections of the international community, who argue it violates constitutional rights and freedoms. Supporters, however, claim it seeks to “uphold Ghanaian cultural values and family systems.”
With renewed bipartisan sponsorship, the bill’s reintroduction is expected to rekindle national debate and attract renewed diplomatic and civic attention.
Rightify Ghana and other civil society organisations have pledged to closely monitor parliamentary proceedings, continue providing regular public updates on developments in the House, and advocate against its passage.
The reintroduction marks a new chapter in one of Ghana’s most controversial legislative debates, as ten Members of Parliament have sponsored the bill, seeking to revive the proposed law that lapsed after the dissolution of the Eighth Parliament.
Rightify Ghana 