Rights groups urge ECOWAS to decriminalise drugs, LGBTQ+ rights

Across West Africa, the criminalisation of people who use drugs, sex workers and people with diverse sexual orientations (PWDSO) continues to fuel entrenched cycles of poverty, stigma, disease and violence.

Instead of addressing the root causes of social vulnerability, repressive laws and policies further marginalise communities already excluded from public services and protections.

The West Africa Drug Policy Network (WADPN) and its partners have renewed calls on ECOWAS and national governments, particularly in Ghana, Nigeria and Burkina Faso, to take decisive steps towards decriminalisation and the protection of human rights.

They argue that punitive approaches have failed to curb drug use, end sex work or erase diverse identities, but have instead worsened public health and human security challenges.

In Ghana and Nigeria, for instance, harsh drug laws have contributed to prison overcrowding, heightened HIV prevalence and deepened the isolation of people from healthcare systems.

The West Africa Commission on Drugs, chaired by the late Kofi Annan, stressed that drug use must be treated as a public health issue rather than a criminal offence.

Advocates emphasise that decriminalisation does not promote drug use; rather, it redirects scarce resources from punishment and incarceration to harm reduction, rehabilitation and community care.

Success stories from countries such as Portugal and Uruguay demonstrate that such policies improve health outcomes and reduce crime rates. On sex work, Senegal stands out as the only West African nation with a comprehensive and regulated framework.

Despite its shortcomings, this model has reduced HIV transmission, facilitated access to health services and improved monitoring of violence and abuse. By contrast, in Ghana, Nigeria and Burkina Faso, sex workers face arbitrary arrests, harassment and almost no legal recourse. This is compounded by moralistic laws and weak public health systems, which strip sex workers of dignity and safety.

WADPN insists that sex work must be decriminalised, regulated under rights-based frameworks and recognised as legitimate labour deserving of protection. The plight of PWDSO is equally alarming.

In Nigeria, the Same-Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act has unleashed waves of violence, extortion and fear. In Ghana, the controversial anti-human rights bill threatens to institutionalise discrimination, while in Burkina Faso, the state’s silence leaves communities unprotected.

These conditions violate the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which guarantees dignity, equality and freedom from discrimination.

The ACHPR Resolution 275 explicitly calls for protection of individuals against violence based on sexual orientation or gender identity, a responsibility governments are failing to uphold.

According to WADPN, ECOWAS must move beyond rhetoric and demonstrate genuine commitment by adopting a regional human rights and health strategy for key populations, supporting drug law reform and harm reduction programmes, and creating mechanisms to monitor and report abuses against sex workers and PWDSO.

Crucially, governments must be held accountable to their international human rights obligations. Advocates stress that decriminalisation is not merely a legal debate; it is a matter of life and death.

They urge member states to amend repressive laws, expand community-led health services, fund rights-based education and policing reforms, and include affected communities in policy decisions.