| Abstract: | In most African states, religion is still a strong influence that informs political rhetoric and policy making. Where religious identity is seen to be confluent with ethnicity, culture, and government, policy arguments are frequently constituted in moral and theological terms instead of constitutional or rights-based frameworks. This paper discusses the role of religion in policy-making using a comparative case study on Nigeria and Ghana, with specific references to two major developments, namely: the reintroduction of Sharia law in northern Nigeria since 1999 and the anti-LGBTQ (Human Sexual Rights and Family Values) Bill in Ghana since 2021. This article contends that religion does not just work as a belief system but as a political tool that justifies state authority, organizes popular sentiment and organizes law. In Nigeria, the implementation of Sharia law is an indication that there is institutionalization of Islamic identity in a federal and religiously plural state, which brings about tensions between constitutional secularism and religious autonomy. The Anti-LGBTQ bill in Ghana is an example of the convergence of Christian and Islamic moral models in influencing the national laws of a formally secular country. Based on the comparison of these cases, the article determines the general tendencies in African governance in which religion plays a role in the process of law making based on identity politics, electoral motives, and social conventions. It points to an important gap in research: although the available literature focuses on religion and politics as two distinct variables, there is a lack of comparative analysis of the direct influence of religion on policy outcomes in various national settings. The paper finds that the role of religion in policy discussions cannot be homogenous or necessarily democratic but instead varies according to political organization, historical backgrounds, and other social pressures. |
| Keywords: | Religion, Public Policy, Sharia Law, Anti-LGBTQ Bill, Nigeria, Ghana, Governance, Identity Politics, Secularism. |
