Understanding and addressing homophobia in Ghana & Africa

As a feminist grant-making organisation, the African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) is well aware that patriarchal violence is a prevalent problem across Africa. State and community-sanctioned violence, which maintains patriarchal power, remains an urgent issue for millions of Africans made vulnerable by various social forces of exclusion. This includes Africans who belong to sexual and gender minorities.

AWDF knows it's possible to build societies that are free from violence against people, regardless of their gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation. Throughout Ghana and Africa’s history, there has been such societies. And across Ghana and Africa today, there are many communities, locales, families and individuals that continue to reject such violence. This document is designed to be an educational resource for people working to address, reduce and eliminate violence against LGBTQ+ Africans. Conceived as part of the #LoveAndFreedomAfrica campaign, this guide offers information that will help make our societies safer for people whose gender expression, gender identity and/or sexual orientation go beyond cisgender and heterosexual norms.