Lawmakers from across Africa have gathered in Ghana’s capital for the opening of a major inter-parliamentary conference focused on family policy, national sovereignty and cultural values.
The 4th African Inter-Parliamentary Conference on Family, Sovereignty and Values opened on Wednesday in Accra, bringing together more than 300 delegates from over 30 countries, according to organisers.
The event, hosted by the Parliament of Ghana, is being attended by senior lawmakers, policy experts and religious leaders, with President John Dramani Mahama expected to address the opening ceremony.
Parliament Speaker Alban Bagbin said the conference aims to strengthen African cooperation on issues including governance, technology, food systems and what he described as the protection of “African values and identity”.
“This conference is not merely a gathering; it is a declaration that Africa will no longer sit mute or stand in silence,” he said ahead of the opening.
The four-day meeting will also examine proposals for an African Charter on Family Values and Sovereignty, which organisers say would guide member states on cultural and social policy.
Ghana is hosting the event amid heightened political debate over social policy, following the passage of a new law criminalising aspects of LGBTQ+ identity and advocacy, a development condemned by rights groups but supported by its backers as aligned with national values.
Previous editions of the conference were held in Uganda. Accra’s gathering marks its first hosting in West Africa.
