Several West African countries have introduced or strengthened anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in recent years, with Senegal, Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso all criminalising or imposing harsher penalties on same-sex relations since 2023, while Ghana's parliament has passed a bill criminalising LGBTQ+ "activities" that awaits presidential assent. Rights campaigners say the trend is driven by political opportunism, religious lobbying, and the influence of transnational conservative groups — including Western Christian organisations such as Arizona-based Family Watch International — which have backed regional conferences promoting anti-LGBTQ+ legislation across the continent. Activists warn that the laws are already causing severe harm, including arbitrary detention, police entrapment, disruption of HIV services, and displacement of LGBTQ+ people across borders.