Ghanaian lawyer and policy analyst, Amanda Akuokor Clinton has condemned a legislative proposal seeking to make DNA paternity testing compulsory for every child born in a healthcare facility in Ghana.

According to her, the proposal is 'discriminatory, legally incoherent and morally corrosive.'

Her comments come after reports spread of a legislative proposal currently advancing through Ghana's policy space seeks to mandate compulsory paternity testing for all children born in Ghana's healthcare facilities.

In a video shared on her social media, Clinton argued that the proposed bill, which would also criminalise what its sponsors call "paternity fraud" was not a neutral search for biological truth but rather a state-mandated instrument of suspicion directed at women.

"The bill is not a neutral search for truth. It is a discriminatory, legally incoherent and morally corrosive instrument that would inject state-mandated suspicion into the moment of birth," she wrote.

Clinton identified three core legal failures in the proposal.

She argued it was structurally discriminatory, noting that it demanded proof of paternity while treating maternity as unquestionable, effectively making mothers alone prove their fidelity at the point of birth.

"This is not gender-neutral policy; it is a legislative presumption that mothers alone must demonstrate fidelity. No comparable regime exists for questioning maternity. Such selectivity reveals the bill’s true character: not the pursuit of scientific fact, but the institutionalisation of distrust directed at women," she noted.

She also criticised the bill for failing to distinguish between innocent error and deliberate deception, arguing that treating every DNA mismatch as presumptive evidence of criminality was a return to the logic of trial by ordeal.

"By treating every exclusion as presumptive evidence of criminality, the proposal revives the logic of trial by ordeal, where an adverse result alone proves guilt, rather than modern principles of intent and proof," she added.

The lawyer further described the bill as unnecessary, pointing out that Ghana already had existing legal frameworks for resolving paternity disputes, including the Evidence Act, the Children's Act and the Courts Act, all of which place the best interests of the child at the centre of such determinations.

"These statutes rightly place the best interests of the child at the centre. Compulsory testing at birth would disrupt this framework without justification," she wrote.

Clinton also raised economic concerns, noting that as a private member's bill, it could not lawfully draw on the Consolidated Fund, meaning the cost would fall on new parents already burdened with hospital and postnatal expenses.

"The state would be forcing families to finance their own vindication against a presumption of maternal deceit," she stated.

Why Ghana's proposed Paternity Testing Bill risks state-sanctioned discrimination

She noted that Justice Sedinam Awo Kwadam had also condemned the bill, and echoed the judge's characterisation of it as less a paternity fraud bill and more a "proof of fidelity at birth" bill.

"Families deserve policies grounded in trust, due process and the rule of law, not blanket suspicion and coercion," Clinton wrote, calling on the legislature to reject the proposal outright.

See the post below:

@lawyerclintonafrica Ghana wants to force compulsory paternity tests on EVERY mother at birth 😱 Justice Sedinam Awo Kwadam says this bill is discriminatory and dangerous. Lawyer Amanda Akuokor Clinton Esq. breaks it down. Law & Power 👩🏾‍⚖️ Your thoughts? #GhanaLaw #PaternityTest #PaternityFraud #JusticeKwadam #LawAndPower ♬ original sound - Lawyer Clinton