The Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference has cautioned the government against downplaying the importance of the LGBTQ+ and family values debate, insisting that “no nation lives by bread alone.”
In a public statement issued on Friday, April 10, 2026, and signed by the Bishop of Sunyani and President of the Conference, Most Rev. Matthew Kwasi Gyamfi, the Bishops called for a serious national dialogue on issues relating to family values and LGBTQ matters.
The statement was in direct response to recent remarks attributed to President John Dramani Mahama and Minister for Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, who suggested that LGBTQ+ issues are “not the most important issue” facing the nation and described discussions on the topic as “not a major priority” and a “waste of time.”
While acknowledging the government’s focus on urgent socio-economic challenges such as inflation, unemployment and gaps in public services, the Bishops warned against framing moral questions as secondary or inconsequential.
“Even if intended to prioritise urgent socio-economic concerns, such descriptions risk conveying that certain moral questions may be set aside as inconsequential. Yet no question that touches the structure of human identity, family life, and social continuity can be trivial. Nations do not live by bread alone. They are sustained also by the invisible architecture of values,” the statement said.
The Conference rejected what it described as a false separation between economic development and moral responsibility, stressing that the two are not rivals but companions.
“We readily acknowledge the weight of Ghana’s present challenges. However, it is analytically unsound to frame a choice between economic progress and moral coherence. The two are not rivals but companions,” they added.
The Bishops argued that stable family structures contribute significantly to improved educational outcomes, reduced crime rates and greater economic mobility, describing the family as a critical pillar of social stability.
Reaffirming the Church’s traditional position, the statement defined “family values” as the understanding of marriage as a lifelong union between one man and one woman, ordered toward mutual good and the procreation and formation of children.
“The family is the first school of virtue and the seedbed of civic responsibility. When the family flourishes, society finds coherence. When it fractures, social costs multiply, often silently, often generationally,” the Bishops noted.
They emphasised two inseparable moral principles: the inviolable dignity of every human person — condemning violence, hatred or unjust discrimination against any individual regardless of sexual orientation — and the responsibility of society to uphold and protect the institution of the family founded upon the union of a man and a woman.
On the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill currently before Parliament, the Bishops recalled a prior assurance from President Mahama regarding assent to the legislation, urging him to honour it if the bill is passed.
“Should Parliament complete its deliberations and pass the bill, we urge the president to honour this assurance,” the statement said.
They however called for careful legislative scrutiny to ensure the law reflects both the moral convictions of Ghanaians and constitutional commitments to human dignity and fundamental rights.
The Bishops warned that dismissing the national debate as a “waste of time” risks alienating citizens for whom these issues are existentially meaningful, and appealed to the executive, legislature, religious leaders, traditional authorities and civil society to engage in a dialogue marked by intellectual seriousness, mutual respect and moral clarity.
“Words can either build a republic of trust or fracture it into suspicion,” they added.
