There is only one country in Africa which grants the almost the same rights to the LGBT community as the Member States of the EU. Only South Africa recognises same-sex unions and also protects the gays and lesbians with anti-discrimination laws.
Six countries implemented anti-discrimination legislation on the ground of sexual orientation: South Africa, Botswana, Mozambique, Mauritius, the Seychelles, and Cape Verde.
Death penalty for being homosexual is common in Sudan and Mauritania and parts of Nigeria and Somalia.
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A short summary of the LGBT rights in African countries
African countries with the more liberal approach:
- Benin: the age of consent for same-sex activity is 21. Despite the intentions to amend the existing Criminal Code of Benin, the old law from 1877 is still in force.
- Burkina Faso: there is no law criminalising same-sex activity or relations.
- Cape Verde: no criminalisation.
- Central African Republic: Same-sex sexual acts are not outlawed among adults.
- Chad: difficult situation, but ILGA (http://ilga.org/downloads/2017/ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2017_WEB.pdf) classify the country as "legal".
- Congo: prohibits same-sex relations with a person, younger than 21.
- Ivory Coast: indecency law was used to jail gays in 2017. Government officials refused to explain why.
- Democratic Republic of Congo: no criminalisation for the LGBT community.
- Djibouti: No criminalisation for the adult LGBT community.
- Equatorial Guinea: There is evidence of the State intimidation of the LGBT people.
- Gabon: the country is a highly discriminatory jurisdiction for gays.
- Guinea-Bissau: Same-sex activity or relations are not criminalised.
- Lesotho: Sodomy is not mentioned in the Penal Code.
- Madagascar: the age of consent for LGBT people is 21.
- Mali: no law targets consensual same-sex relations.
- Mozambique: removed criminalising provisions in 2014.
- Niger: the age of consent is 21
- Rwanda: the report of Ageciro from 2016 points to severe stigmatisation.
- São Tomé and Príncipe: the Penal Code does not contain laws against same-sex activity.
- Seychelles: decriminalised consensual relations among adult persons.
South Africa: civil union is allowed and SA has anti-discrimination laws.
African countries where same-sex activity is prohibited
- Algeria: Imprisonment for two months to two years, fine.
- Angola: internment in a workhouse or agricultural colony from six months to three years.
- Botswana: imprisonment for less than seven years.
- Burundi: imprisonment from three months to two years, fine.
- Cameroon: imprisonment from six months to five years, fine.
- Comoros: imprisonment between one and five years.
- Egypt: same-sex activity is outlawed under debauchery, indecency and other legislation, imprisonment from six months to five years.
- Eritrea: same-sex activity is "punishable by simple imprisonment."
- Ethiopia: imprisonment from one to ten years.
- Gambia: gay activity imprisonment for 14 years, lesbian activity imprisonment for five years.
- Ghana: imprisonment for less than three years.
- Guinea: imprisonment from six months to three years.
- Kenya: imprisonment up to 14 years.
- Liberia: imprisonment for maximum one year.
- Lybia: imprisonment for less than five years.
- Malawi: imprisonment for 14 years with or without corporal punishment.
- Mauritania: death penalty.
- Mauritius: imprisonment for maximum five years.
- Morocco: imprisonment from six months to three years, fine.
- Namibia: sodomy is still a crime.
- Nigeria: imprisonment up to 14 years. In Northern Nigerian states death penalty is not rare under the Sharia law.
- Senegal: imprisonment from one to five years, fine.
- Sierra Leone: imprisonment for life or not less than ten years.
- Somalia: imprisonment from one to three years. The death penalty in territories under Sharia law.
- South Sudan: imprisonment maximum ten years, fine.
- Sudan: first punishment for "Sodomy" is flogging one hundred lashes and imprisonment five years. The second penalty is the same; the third is life imprisonment or death sentence.
- Swaziland: according to ILGA, "violence against gay and lesbian persons is evident."
- Tanzania: life sentence, not less than 30 years.
- Togo: imprisonment from one to three years, fine
- Tunisia: jail for three years.
- Uganda: imprisonment for life.
- Zambia: imprisonment for not less than 15 years.
- Zimbabwe: imprisonment maximum one year, fine.
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