Initiative Sankofa d’Afrique de l’Ouest – ISDAO and Queer African Youth Network – QAYN undertook a study on gender ideology and the accompanying anti-gender campaigns in Burkina Faso, Ghana, and Senegal. The goal was to gain a deeper understanding of the structure, organization, and manifestations of so-called “anti-gender” movements in West Africa.

The study’s findings brought to light a certain degree of coordination within the LGBTQI+ movement to safeguard itself, resist, and counter anti-gender politics in West Africa. Given their roots in the West African LGBTQI+ movement, QAYN and ISDAO deemed it essential to comprehend the operational mechanisms of these anti-gender movements, including their sources of funding. This initiative also seeks to facilitate discussions to tailor response strategies to counter anti-gender politics and rhetoric, with the ultimate aim of providing enhanced support to the LGBTQI+ movement in the West African region.