President John Dramani Mahama has called for a broad national stakeholder engagement to determine how Ghana should address harmful content on TikTok and other emerging digital platforms, while stressing that legitimate criticism and freedom of expression must be protected.
The President has directed the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) and the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) to convene the engagement, which is expected to bring together government institutions, media organisations, content creators, bloggers, influencers, civil society groups, legal experts and digital platforms.
Why the forum?
The Presidency says the rapid growth of social media and emerging platforms has fundamentally changed Ghana’s public-information landscape.
Bloggers, TikTok creators and influencers can now command audiences comparable to, or larger than, some traditional media outlets, but they do not necessarily operate under the same editorial standards or accountability mechanisms.
Mahama therefore wants stakeholders to examine whether Ghana’s existing legal and regulatory framework remains adequate for the digital environment.
Protecting free speech
Importantly, the proposed process is not framed solely around restricting online content.
The Presidency says the roadmap should distinguish between lawful criticism, political commentary, satire and dissent on one hand, and hate speech, threats, incitement and other unlawful conduct on the other.
Mahama has also expressed concern about what he considers disproportionate arrests over criticism or politically charged commentary, arguing that such actions could undermine confidence in state institutions.
What could change?
The forum is expected to examine possible policy, legislative, regulatory and non-legislative measures, alongside public education and digital-literacy initiatives.
Stakeholders are also expected to consider professional and ethical standards for online creators, accessible complaints mechanisms and alternatives to arrest and prosecution where conduct does not involve clearly criminal behaviour.
The development comes amid an increasingly intense debate in Ghana over online speech, misinformation and the treatment of bloggers and social-media users. The MFWA has previously raised concerns about what it described as the potential criminalisation of speech under existing laws, while also acknowledging the need to address genuinely harmful online content.
A debate that could reshape Ghana’s digital space
The planned stakeholder engagement could therefore become an important moment in Ghana’s ongoing conversation about where freedom of expression ends and unlawful online conduct begins.
Rather than announcing a specific new TikTok law, the Presidency says the immediate task is to bring the relevant actors together and develop a roadmap for the President’s consideration.
Watch the video as President Mahama explains why he believes Ghana needs a national conversation before deciding how TikTok and other new-media platforms should be regulated.
