The ECOWAS Community Court of Justice has delivered a landmark judgment against the Republic of Ghana, awarding an aggregate sum of ₦21 million in damages and costs while declaring that Ghana violated the fundamental human rights of a Ghanaian citizen whose passport was allegedly revoked after she married a Nigerian.
The judgment was delivered on June 23, 2026, in the case of Mary Omerere v. Republic of Ghana (Suit No. ECW/CCJ/APP/25/25), an action filed before the regional court in May 2025.
The court held that Ghana breached the applicant’s rights to nationality and freedom of movement after administrative actions by Ghanaian authorities allegedly resulted in the revocation of her passport and denial of entry into her country of birth.
Mary Omerere, a Ghanaian citizen by birth, approached the ECOWAS Court after claiming that her nationality status and travel documents were arbitrarily questioned and effectively invalidated following her marriage to Nigerian citizen Henry Obukohwo Omerere under Nigerian law.
According to court documents and submissions by her legal team, Omerere, who changed her surname after marriage, sought the renewal of her Ghanaian international passport through the Ghana High Commission in Lagos and related diplomatic channels. However, instead of receiving her renewed passport, she allegedly faced prolonged administrative delays, repeated questioning of her birth records, and suggestions that she should obtain a Nigerian passport instead.
Her legal representatives argued that Ghanaian authorities questioned the authenticity of her birth certificate and birth affidavit and refused to process her travel documents despite her insistence that she remained a Ghanaian citizen by birth.
The applicant maintained that the actions of Ghanaian authorities effectively rendered her stateless, deprived her of valid travel documentation, and prevented her from travelling freely to and from Ghana.
She further told the court that the denial of her passport prevented her from attending the funeral of her grandmother in Ghana and exposed her to significant emotional, financial, and family hardship, including concerns regarding her legal residency status in the United Kingdom.
The case was prosecuted by a team of lawyers led by Samuel Ihensekhien on behalf of the League of Public Interest Lawyers. Other members of the legal team included Dr. S. M. Oyeghe Esq. and Mike Ezeobi Esq.
Speaking to journalists after the judgment, the legal team explained that the case centered on the arbitrary denial of Omerere’s Ghanaian nationality rights and the administrative revocation of her passport, which they argued violated both regional and international human rights instruments.
They stated that several efforts were made to engage Ghanaian authorities, including requests for further verification procedures and DNA testing where necessary, but those efforts allegedly received no meaningful response.
Before the ECOWAS Court, Omerere sought declarations affirming her Ghanaian citizenship by birth, declarations that her fundamental rights had been violated, an order compelling Ghana to issue or renew her passport, and substantial damages for the hardships she suffered.
In its judgment, the ECOWAS Court ruled that Ghana violated Omerere’s right to freedom of movement, including her right to leave and return to her country, as guaranteed under Article 12(2) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Article 21(2) of the Constitution of Ghana.
The regional court further held that Ghana violated her right to nationality and her right not to be arbitrarily deprived of that nationality, describing the actions taken against her as inconsistent with established human rights protections.
The court found that the conduct of Ghanaian authorities effectively left the applicant without access to valid travel documentation and unlawfully restricted her ability to exercise her rights as a citizen.
In what legal observers are describing as one of the strongest pronouncements on citizenship rights and freedom of movement within the West African sub-region, the ECOWAS Court also emphasized that African citizens cannot be arbitrarily expelled, excluded, or deprived of their nationality except in accordance with due process of law and lawful judicial procedures.
The court consequently restrained Ghana from actions capable of violating international guarantees relating to nationality and freedom of movement.
It further directed that within six months Ghana must formally communicate its decision regarding the applicant’s passport documentation and nationality status.
As part of the judgment, the court awarded damages assessed at approximately ₦20 million alongside additional monetary awards bringing the total judgment sum to about ₦21 million, equivalent to roughly $15,000, against the Republic of Ghana.
The court also ordered that the costs of litigation, to be assessed by the ECOWAS Court Registry, shall be paid by Ghana.
The decision is expected to have far-reaching implications across West Africa, particularly regarding citizenship rights, passport revocation, nationality disputes, and the treatment of citizens who marry foreign nationals within the ECOWAS region.
Legal analysts say the ruling reinforces the principle that nationality acquired by birth cannot be arbitrarily withdrawn through administrative actions and strengthens protections for the free movement of persons guaranteed under regional and international human rights frameworks.