Report on Citizenship Law: Ghana citizen by birth, except in two cases: a) neither of their parents were Ghanaian citizens and the father was a diplomat or b) the father was deemed an ‘enemy alien’ and the birthplace deemed under occupation of the enemy (Nationality and Citizenship Act, No.1 of 1957, section 7). That means citizenship was attributed automatically at birth to almost all children born in the country (jus soli) after independence, including to children of two foreign parents, with very limited exceptions. The act further provided that a person was deemed a citizen by descent if born outside Ghana and either the mother was a citizen by birth or the father a citizen by birth or naturalisation. A further gendered provision existed for the acquisition of citizenship by registration upon marriage, which was reserved for women who married a citizen of Ghana. Ghanaian women who married non-Ghanaian men were thus not allowed to pass their citizenship onto their spouse. Naturalisation was, however, possible upon application for citizens of Commonwealth countries3, if they were ‘of full age and capacity’ and of ‘good character’ and had resided in Ghana for a period of five years (Nationality and Citizenship Act, No.1 of 1957, section 11). Naturalisation for other foreigners was possible after six years’ residence and a longer list of conditions, including knowledge of an indigenous Ghanaian language, an oath of allegiance to Ghana and the renunciation of any other citizenship (Nationality and Citizenship Act, No.1 of 1957, section 14 and schedule 2). Like many other African countries after Ghana, the newly independent Ghana decided to prohibit dual citizenship (Manby 2018, 109). A closer look at its denationalisation law suggests that the main concern at the heart of the prohibition of dual citizenship was not Ghanaian emigrants who obtained a second citizenship abroad but naturalised immigrants in Ghana. Denationalisation provisions differed between the two groups. For Ghanaian emigrants who naturalised abroad, the 1957 Nationality and Citizenship Act left a number of loopholes that allowed for exceptional cases in which dual citizenship could be tolerated. It formulated the deprivation of citizenship for citizens of birth/descent as follows: ‘The Minister [the minister responsible for citizenship, most likely Home Affairs] may by order deprive any person of his Ghana citizenship if the Minister is satisfied that that person has at any time while a citizen of Ghana and of full age and capacity acquired the nationality or citizenship of a foreign country by any voluntary and formal act other than marriage and that it is not conducive to the public good that he should continue to be a citizen of Ghana.’ (Nationality and Citizenship Act, No.1 of 1957, section 16(1)). This provision was relatively tolerant of dual citizenship compared to the laws of most other African states at independence. Most importantly, Ghanaian citizenship was not lost automatically upon acquiring another citizenship but required a decision of the minister. Moreover, for Ghanaians by birth or descent, the decision to revoke citizenship was not at the Minister’s complete discretion, but required a determination that it would be contrary to the public good if someone would retain their citizenship, and citizenship acquired through marriage was explicitly excluded from this possibility. On the other hand, dual citizenship was not permitted for citizens who became Ghanaian after birth through naturalisation: a declaration of willingness to renounce the other citizenship was required before naturalisation would be granted (although without a clear requirement to provide proof that another citizenship had actually been renounced; Nationality and Citizenship Act, No.1 of 1957, sections 11(4) and 14). 3 These included ‘the United Kingdom and Colonies, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, India, Pakistan, Southern Rhodesia and Ceylon’ (Ghana Nationality and Citizenship Act 1957, 9(3)). For reciprocally facilitated provisions for naturalisation in Commonwealth countries, see Manby (2018, 62). GLOBALCIT 3