Former Member of Parliament for Akuapem South, Mr. O.B Amoah, has called for urgent reforms to ensure sustainable and free public access to legal information in Ghana.
He cautioned that limited accessibility to laws undermines justice, weakens governance, and threatens the rule of law.
Speaking on the theme ‘Sustainable Public Access to Law for Ghana’ at a two-day workshop under the banner ‘Partnering for Free Access to Legal Information – Developing Strategic Relationships’, Mr. O. B. Amoah made a compelling case for greater transparency and accessibility in legal frameworks.
He stressed that the right to know the law is fundamental to democracy.
The workshop was organised by the Ghana Legal Information Institute (GHALLI), a non-profit organisation, in collaboration with GIZ.
Mr O. B. Amoah noted that, “While it is the obligation of every person to act within the law, there is a corresponding obligation on the state to make the law available to the public.”
Citing international legal precedents, he questioned the fairness of the legal maxim “ignorance of the law is no excuse,” noting that it becomes unjust when citizens are denied reasonable access to the law.
The former Minister of State at the Ministry of Local Government, Decentralization and Rural Development referenced case law including R. v. William Chambers (2008) and Blackpool Corporation v. Locker (1948) to stress that inaccessible laws erode the very foundation of the rule of law.
Mr. O. B. Amoah outlined the far-reaching consequences of legal inaccessibility, including deprivation of liberty, privacy, and property; creation or abolition of legal rights and duties; risk of irregularities in judicial procedures; disregard for fundamental public policy; and amendment of constitutional provisions without public knowledge.
“The law has the power to alter lives significantly, and this power must be exercised transparently and fairly,” he said.
Scattered sources of legislation
According to the former Minister of State, the barriers to accessing legal information in Ghana include the scattered and uncoordinated sources of legislation; inadequate legal frameworks for publishing and revising laws; poor electronic access to legislation; limited public sale points for printed laws; and absence of a free official electronic legal database
“There is a clear lack of policy to ensure that official versions of our laws are accessible freely online. That must change,” he further advocated.
Models for Ghana
Mr. O. B. Amoah pointed to countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand as models Ghana can emulate.
In the UK, a collaboration between Her Majesty’s Stationery Office and the Statutory Publications Office led to a comprehensive online legislation platform.
Australia’s Legislation Act, 2003 and New Zealand’s Legislation Act, 2012 both mandate the publication of free, authoritative legal texts online.
“We can learn from these models to build a comprehensive system for Ghana,” he added.
Speaker seeks institutional collaboration
Speaker Alban Bagbin has advocated partnerships between Parliament, the Judiciary, legal professionals, academia, civil society, and regional bodies to build an integrated and automated digital system for laws, judgments, and gazettes.
“We must have a clear and achievable roadmap, a commitment to our citizens that by 2027, every Ghanaian will have access to all laws, judgments, and gazettes at their fingertips,” Mr. Bagbin made the call in a speech read on his behalf by the First Deputy Speaker Bernard.
Ghana’s scores zero on Open African Law Index
Mariya Badeva, Director of AfricanLII at the University of Cape Town, revealed that just 18 months ago, Ghana scored zero on the Open African Law Index due to the lack of free public access to core legal documents.
The index evaluates governments’ provision of legal materials such as legislation and case law online, assessing whether access is free, authoritative, and up to date.
“It reflects the foundational role that access to legal information plays in governance, economic resilience, and public service delivery,” she explained.
However, Ms. Badeva acknowledged significant progress since then.
With support from the Judicial Service of Ghana, court judgments are now being published online and made accessible to the public for the first time.
Participants at the workshop deliberated on practical strategies to foster open, timely, and reliable access to legal information.
The consensus was clear: improved legal transparency is essential for strengthening democracy, enhancing justice, and ensuring public trust in governance.
