Christian Council of Ghana

Formation	30 October 1929
Type	Ecumenical body
General Secretary	Rev. Dr Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong
Website	www.christiancouncilgh.org

The Christian Council of Ghana (CCG) is an umbrella group that unites 31 churches in Ghana.^[1] The council has its members from Charismatic, Pentecostal, Orthodox and other churches.

History of the council

The Christian Council of Ghana (CCG) was founded on 30 October 1929 by five churches namely African Methodist Episcopal (AME), Zion Church, English Church Mission (Anglican), Ewe Presbyterian Church (now Evangelical Presbyterian Church); Presbyterian Church of the Gold Coast (now Ghana) and Wesleyan Methodist Church (now the Methodist Church Ghana).

The purpose was to seek unity and to work with members on issues of social concern and be the voice of the voiceless in society. Currently the CCG comprises twenty six member churches and three Christian Organizations.

The CCG has over the years gone through a series of restructuring and renewal processes in a bid to develop a relevant, efficient and effective organization that is pro-active and responsive to challenges facing the member churches. In the search for relevance and common witness, the determining factors have been global and national macro socio - economic and political trends such as political governance ranging from military rule to multi-party democracy.

Given rapidly changing social development theory, practice and requirements of development partners and the emphasis on lean and efficient organizations to deliver services, the Council saw the need for an in - depth Organisational Assessment which unlike project evaluations has not been conducted in the recent past.

Hence the purpose of the assessment is “To enable the CCG to become a more effective and relevant faith-based organization, in terms of fulfilling its mission and responding to the changing development context”.

The methodology used in this study was participatory in nature using OD tools besides structured questionnaire, focus group discussions and individual interviews applying guiding questions. Validations and debriefing sessions were conducted for staff, Senior Management Team, General Secretary (GS), Chairpersons of the Advisory Committees and the CCG Chairman.

Vision

To be the Triune God‟s instrument for change in Ghana where the highest value is placed on Peace, Justice, Unity and Respect for the Dignity and Integrity of Creation.

Mission Statement

To strengthen the capacity of our members to contribute to achieving Justice, Unity, Reconciliation and Integrity of Creation among various sectors of Ghanaian society and provide a forum for joint action on issues of common interest. In seeking to achieve this, we are guided by the Holy Bible and, in all matters of national interest, remain non-partisan.

Core Values

1. Unity – based on Christian love, truthfulness and peace;

2. Justice;

3. Reconciliation;

4. Compassion for the displaced and disadvantaged;

5. Pursuit of Tolerance among Faiths; and

6. Integrity of Creation.

Who we are

The Christian Council apart from its core business of ecumenism is a Research Based Advocacy Institution in these four areas;

• Governance
• Human Rights and Gender
• Interfaith and Ecumenism
• Social and Economic Justice

Goal

The goal of the Council in its new focus is to contribute to the development of a peaceful, just and equitable society in Ghana, where there would be an increased realization of social and economic rights of disadvantaged women, men and children in Ghana. The Council seeks an increased engagement of itself, member churches and citizen groups with local and national government on social and economic policy and practice. This would assist to enable the Ghanaian government to be more accountable to its citizens.

WHAT WE DO/OUR CONCERNS

The Christian Council apart from its core business is a Research Based and Advocacy Institution. It has over the years contributed to the socio-economic development of the nation through its six thematic areas which are;

1. Institutional Strengthening;

2. Good Governance;

3. Socio-Economic Justice; and

4. Inter-Faith Ecumenism;

5. Peace and Reconciliation;

6. Human Rights and Gender.

Hierarchy

The Christian Council of Ghana is led by the Executive Committee. This is made up of the heads of member Churches. Their decisions are implemented through the General Secretary assisted by directors, officers and staff of the secretariat.

Membership of the council

The council has been restructured several times since its formation. It currently includes thirty-one (31) members, comprising Twenty-nine (29) churches and two (2) Christian organizations.^[1][2]

Current Membership

1. The Methodist Church Ghana
2. Presbyterian Church of Ghana
3. Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Ghana
4. The Salvation Army
5. African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
6. Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
7. African Methodist Episcopal Church
8. EDEN Revival Church
9. Ghana Baptist Convention
10. Evangelical Lutheran Church
11. Religious Society of Friends
12. Ghana Mennonite Church
13. Greek Orthodox Church
14. Christ Evangelical Mission
15. Evangelical Church of Ghana
16. Fellowship of Christian Churches
17. Legon Interdenominational Church
18. Anglican Diocese of Accra
19. The Luke Society
20. Ghana Evangelical Convention
21. Accra Ridge Church
22. Tema Joint Church
23. Teshie/Nungua United Church
24. Atomic Hills United Church
25. Ghana Police Church
26. Winners Chapel Ghana
27. Nigritian Episcopal Church
28. Trinity United Church
29. Free Methodist Church

Christian Organizations

1. Young Men’s Christian Association
2. Young Women’s Christian Association

The council executives are Rev.Dr Ernest Adu-Gyamfi (Chairman) and Rev.Dr. Kwabena Opuni - Frimpong (General secretary).

Projects

The council undertakes various projects in Ghana. One of its major goals is the elimination of stigma and discrimination of people living with HIV/AIDS.^[3] The project trained community members in areas of the country that had high HIV/AIDS prevalence of 8–9%. The training involved basic facts about HIV/AIDS, stigma and discrimination among others.^[4]

The council has also set up an Interfaith Unit to educate Christians on the need for peaceful existence and tolerance among members of different faiths.^[4] The School Dropout Scholarship Programme promotes education among Liberian refugees in the Buduburam refugee settlement near Accra. The programme also identifies the causes and consequences of school dropout among the refugees.^[4]

In governance and nation building, the council monitors the activities of political parties and professional bodies in the country and offers advice to them. In 2005 the council appealed to Ghanaians and professional bodies to put the country's economy nation first and spend more time discussing issues of national interest concerning education, health and poverty.^[5] In 2011 the council encouraged political party leaders and their followers to avoid the use of provocative language in their speeches.^[6]

References