West Africa: Silencing the Watchdogs - a July 2025 Overview of West Africa

20 August 2025
Media Foundation for West Africa (Accra)
press release

The Media Foundation for West Africa's (MFWA) monitoring of freedom of expression developments in West Africa in July 2025 recorded a troubling series of abuses.

The violations documented fell mainly into two categories: arrests and detentions, and physical assaults on journalists and activists. These incidents were recorded in Benin, Ghana, Nigeria, and Senegal.

Alongside these violations, there were also some redress measures, including bail granted to two detained Nigerians and disciplinary action taken against a police officer in Ghana who assaulted journalists.

With support from the 11th Hour Project of The Schmidt Family Foundation, the MFWA continues to track and document such incidents as part of efforts to promote a safe and enabling environment for free expression in West Africa.

Access the full report here.

Read the original of this report, with tables and illustrations where appropriate.

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