Answers to Prayer

1 There has been a spiritual upsurge in Ghana

2 The National Survey orchestrated by the Ghana Evangelism Committee (GEC) has helped to bring renewal, vision, church-planting goals and a halting of decline in many denominations

3 During the 1990s there was a big increase in evangelism among the animistic and Muslim northern peoples — both in the north and among migrants to the centre and south

4 Only five languages had the Bible in 1965. By 2000, 43 had the Bible, New Testament or a New Testament translation in progress

Challenges for Prayer

1 The rocky first decades after independence were not good soil for developing stable, fair, democratic institutions

2 For years, Christianity has had a large following in the more developed south

3 Vision for the 1990s

a) Nominal Christians numbered seven million

b) Of the 26,000 towns and villages, 15,000 had no congregations of Christians

c) In the less evangelised north there were three million individuals in 40-50 peoples who were unreached or, at best, partially reached

d) In the heavily evangelized south lived two million northerners (18% of the population) that were unreached

e) The five million adherents of Islam and traditional religions needed to be reached

4 Vision for the 21st Century

a) To increase congregations from 22,600 to 53,000

b) To plant 2,000 new churches for northern peoples

c) An active, witnessing church for every village, town, urban neighbourhood and ethnic community

Geography

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Area 238,533 sq.km. Grasslands in north, farmland and forest in south.

Population (2000) 20,212,495 +2.75%AGR

Capital Accra 2,250,000.

Peoples

Kwa 71.1%; Gur 25.4%; Mande 1.1%; Other 2.4%.

Literacy 70%. Official language English. All languages 72. Languages with Scriptures 8Bi 20NT 9por 17w.i.p.

Economy

Main exports are cocoa, gold and timber – all susceptible to market fluctuations. HDI 0.544; 133^rd/174. Public debt 75% of GNP. Income/person $400 (1.4% of USA).

Politics

Independent from Britain in 1957.

Religion

Secular state with religious freedom since 1992 following a period of some restrictions.

Churches in Ghana

Missionaries from Ghana

approx. 750 in 60 agencies to 32 countries, of which 144 are abroad.

Missionaries to Ghana

400 in 70 agencies from 23 countries

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