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Els MBN360 News
The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) has expressed concern over Ghana’s declining press freedom ranking, attributing it to rising violations against journalists and media practitioners. Ghana dropped to 52nd position in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index, sparking worries about the country’s commitment to press freedom.
MFWA Executive Director, Sulemana Braimah, highlighted the worrying trend of violations against media and citizens in Ghana, emphasizing that security personnel are often the leading perpetrators. He stressed the need for stiffer sanctions and punishments to deter others from committing such crimes.
Ghana’s press freedom ranking has been on a decline, with the country dropping 30 places to 60th position in 2022 and further to 62nd in 2023. The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has also expressed concern over the country’s poor performance on the world press freedom index, citing wanton attacks on journalists by those in power.
The MFWA has condemned the Ghana Police Service’s recent practice of arresting and detaining individuals over alleged false publications, saying it strays into territory meant for civil litigation. The organization has also called for greater commitment from the government to end impunity for crimes against journalists.
Braimah attributed this downward trend to a rise in violations of media freedom, including arbitrary arrests, detentions, and physical assaults by security personnel.
“Even though we improved to 50th position in 2024, we remain far from the high levels we had achieved previously. In 2018, when we placed 33rd out of 180 countries, Ghana was number one on the African continent. The reasons for the decline are clear,” he said.
“We have witnessed an increase in media freedom violations, ranging from arbitrary arrests and detentions to physical violence, violent disruption of live programs, and the growing misuse of laws on false publications,” he said.
