Niger has introduced a new penal code that criminalises LGBTQ+ activity, establishing penalties of up to 10 years in prison. The country’s military rulers announced the new laws on Friday, June 12.

Following a coup in 2023, Niger has been ruled by a military junta called the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland. According to the United Nations Human Development Index, Niger is one of the poorest nations in the world.

Under the new penal code, anyone who “commits or attempts to commit an immodest or unnatural act or practices lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual (LGBTQIA+) acts” can be punished with between five and 10 years in prison and a fine. It is unclear what constitutes an “asexual” act or how it could be prosecuted.

Moreover, the penal code establishes the same penalty for people “who officiated the marriage, to the witnesses of the alleged spouses, as well as to persons who have given their consent for the celebration of the marriage and to the organizers.”

While the LGBTQ+ community in the country faces widespread discrimination and stigmatisation, same-sex relations were not illegal in Niger prior to the introduction of the new penal code.

Since the coup d’etat in 2023, the head of the military junta, General Abdourahamane Tiani, has pushed an “anti-Western” agenda, portraying the repression of the LGBTQ+ community as an attempt to liberate the country from colonialism.

In November 2023, Niger formed the Alliance of Sahel States with Mali and Burkina Faso, which are also under military rule. The alliance originated as a mutual defence pact, and its goal is to oppose foreign intervention in the region.

Both Burkina Faso and Mali have recently criminalised homosexuality, with the former introducing legislation last year, while the latter passed a law in 2024. The announcement of the new penal code in Niger brings the total number of countries that criminalise same-sex acts worldwide to 66.