Is Porn Banned in Northern African Countries? 

Looking to travel around Africa? Not sure of the porn laws in Northern Africa? It’s not something you want to get unstuck about and land up in jail for looking at your SinParty feed.

The outlook of porn laws internationally is varied. We’ve put together a map to give you an outline and have dug into the details about laws in Southeast Asia, eastern and western Europe, and the USA.

Whilst this in no way constitutes legal advice, we’ve done some digging to try and uncover what the porn laws are in countries in the top half of Africa are, or seem to be. It can be tough tracking down the detail about these porn laws in Northern Africa so if you’re unsure, check with locals.

In terms of child pornography, there are some countries that are lacking in clear laws in the area. It’s still wrong and you should never seek images of children under 18. Even if it may not clearly be illegal in a particular country, you can and will be prosecuted in your home country for anything along these lines.

Is porn banned in…

Nigeria

Although Nigeria is the country that searches for porn the most in Africa, there was a ban on “indecent or obscene content” brought in in 2015. That being said, there’s nothing that specifically outlaws porn so people do access it from there.

Ethiopia

According to the Ethiopian penal code, “obscure and indecent publications” are illegal because they “corrupt morals”. Would you argue that the internet is a publication? We’d not be keen on spending time in Addis Ababa’s finest prison, but you do you…

Egypt

In 2009 there was a court order that banned porn in Egypt. It wasn’t strictly enforced – the country had other things to be dealing with – but in 2015 the government started to crack down on online porn access.

Words and actions haven’t really aligned and there’s not been the investment needed to actually stop porn being accessed and it seems easy to bypass any restrictions. Proceed with caution, though.

Algeria

You might be rather surprised that countries in north Africa, which have large Muslim populations, took so long to ban porn. In Algeria, it wasn’t until November 2018 that a law was passed that specifically banned pornography in Algeria.

Sudan

Historically, porn in Sudan had been blocked for years. However, in 2019 porn became accessible across the country online again. Furthermore, the government doesn’t go out of its way to get legal, consensual, adult porn blocked or removed. Seems they found some chill.

Morocco

There are laws in Morocco that ban pornography. Having a law and enforcing it are two very different things, however. You’ll not find and errors when you search for porn sites and there’s little evidence that people get into trouble for it. Still be wary and protect yourself when looking at porn overseas, though.

Ghana

The laws on porn in Ghana date back to 1960, which made it illegal to make porno movies. It wasn’t until 2016 that porn was actually banned. However, porn was still regularly being shown on Ghanaian TV as recently as 2017 when there were public complaints that led to call for it stop.

Cameroon

In the penal code of Cameroon, obscene publications are banned. You could go back to the question of whether a website is a publication, but we’re not going to try. It wasn’t until 2019 that child pornography was outright banned with new laws.

Côte d’Ivoire

Getting a straight answer porn laws in Côte d’Ivoire isn’t easy. It’s not allowed to be imported, in line with most other countries. There are strong laws about “gross indecency” which are used to oppress the gay community, which is a whole different thing that shouldn’t be happening, but whether those laws would stop you from viewing porn isn’t clear. Er on the side of caution.

Niger

Again, the porn laws in Niger are also unclear and there’s nothing concrete on the statute books. What a lot of human rights organisations really worry about in the West African country is the lack of a legal definition of a child. To reiterate, this is no excuse to access images of under-18s from Niger.

Burkina Faso

Child pornography is clearly and outright banned in Burkina Faso. Finding anything else about pornography in their laws is tough and we didn’t find anything concrete. Doesn’t mean it’s not there, so if you’re travelling or living there, seek advice of good locals.

Mali

As a Muslim majority country, you’d not expect porn to be easily accessible in Mali. In fact, it’s the Ministry of Islamic Affairs that deals directly with the country’s porn ban and it’s not easy to get access whilst there.

Senegal

Back in 2017, an Islamic broadcast TV channel was hacked. Rather than their usual prayers and stories from their holy book, more than 30 minutes of hardcore porn was shown on Senegalese daytime TV. Generally, porn laws are unclear, but there are tough laws about revenge porn, which is positive.

Chad

The fact that “Chad” is now a meme for white, urban guys on the internet makes searching about porn laws in the country somewhat challenging. We weren’t able to find any solid laws about porn, but that doesn’t mean they’re out there so proceed with caution.

Guinea

This small nation, tucked away in West Africa, doesn’t seem to have laws relating to the internet. At all. It means adult content should be accessible easily. There are specific laws about child porn though, which are reasonably new.

Benin

One of the countries that’s not got much of a legal framework about porn at all, sadly there isn’t even laws about child pornography. Going to say it again, just because there’s no law in the country, doesn’t mean you won’t get locked up in your own country for accessing images from Benin. Child pornography is immoral, disgusting, and illegal.

Tunisia

The law flipped and changed more times than Abella Danger in a shoot back in 2011 and 2012. There had been internet filtering in the country up to this point that was blocking porn. Following the legal battles, filters of sites were introduced and then the highest court in the country overturned it, meaning porn in Tunisia is accessible again. Hurrah!

South Sudan

You can spend up to three years in prison for possessing porn in South Sudan. Under the country’s criminal code, you’ll find section 260 that says that “obscene books etc.” are banned. Would you want to argue that the meaning of that “etc.” is?

Togo

Pornography is “contrary to decency” according to the Togo criminal code, in article 89 if you’re into your specifics. Maybe someone needs to introduce the lawmakers from Togo to some decent porn and see what they say.

Sierra Leone

The Sexual Offences Act was passed by parliament in Sierra Leone back in 2012. Under this law, “possessing, distributing, and circulating… indecent material” is against the law.

Libya

Another country in turmoil that only recently decided internet porn needed laws and rules, in Libya porn was only blocked as recently as 2013. They’re deemed “offensive” in the country and the negative attitude towards porn is directly related to the prevalence of Islam in the Mediterranean nation.

Liberia

Possession of pornography is illegal in Liberia. Back in 2019, there was a scandal in the country when illegal migrant miners working at small mines in the countryside were found the be making and distributing pornography and there were calls for better enforcement.

Mauritania

With a legal system based around the principles of Sharia – the set of Islamic rules that Muslims are supposed to follow – as you’d expect, porn isn’t legal or accessible in Mauritania.

Eritrea

Eritrea is another heavily religious country; most people are Christian and there’s a strong minority of Muslims too. With such a focus on religion in the country, you guessed it, porn is banned. It’s also strictly regulated, unlike some of the other countries we’ve looked at.

The Gambia

Revenge porn – where nudes and sex tapes, whether made with or without consent are distributed without consent – has been made illegal in The Gambia. Apart from that, pornography seems to be legal to access and make.

Guinea Bissau

Apart from a ban on exporting pornography, there aren’t any other restrictions on adult porn within the laws of Guinea Bissau. Child pornography has been made illegal in recent years, too.

Djibouti

Another Muslim majority country that uses the religious laws as their legal framework, Djibouti bans porn. They say that it’s an attack on good morals and anyone found watching or making porn can face up to one year behind bars and with a fine of around US$1,100.

Cabo Verde

These collections of islands off the west coast of Africa is another nation that doesn’t specify any laws on accessing mainstream pornography. There are, as you’d want to see, child pornography laws that outright ban the practice.