Ghana
Ghana was the first sub-Saharan nation to break free from colonial rule. Gold, cocoa, and oil have helped fuel their economy. Ghanaian culture has historically kept its languages alive through oral traditions. Through non-traditional writing, the Akan people in Ghana use a form of symbolic depiction known as Adinkra. These designs represent complex concepts, like proverbs and overarching theories, rather than single words.
KEY CHALLENGES
One in every five children in Ghana experiences stunted growth caused by inadequate nourishment, frequent illness, and an unhealthy environment. Superstition is woven into the core and fabric of traditional African beliefs. It makes people slaves to fear and keeps them in bondage. In the northern regions of Ghana, along the bottom of the Sahara Desert, there is a stark cultural contrast and frequent violence between the Muslim and Christian communities.
our approach
We were never intended to live in poverty, divided against one another, with little hope for peace. In the Kingdom of God, poverty, violence, division, and hopelessness will not exist. We believe the Church is God’s primary transforming agent in the world, and that the local church exists to make its community more like the Kingdom of God.
We partner with local indigenous leaders as they minister to the communities and cultures that they themselves are from. We start projects and programs in the hardest places and set up a plan for them to be self-sustaining in order for them to know independence and the value of reinvesting in their own communities.
Read on to learn how communities are being transformed in Ghana.
Our partners
Mission ONE has been working in West Africa since 2006 through our trusted partners at African Evangelical Christian Mission (AECM), led by Joseph and Graciah Ayigah. AECM focuses on discipleship, pastoral care through relationships, walking with broken families, and freedom from bondage through Christ. Through the local church, they have been able to establish schools and clinics to meet the needs of the community. They currently have over 100 pastors serving in Togo, Benin, Ghana, Nigeria, and Ivory Coast.
PROJECTS
Gozem Car Rental - The Gozem car rental project in Togo is financially supporting the work of the AECM ministry and its missionaries serving vulnerable communities in Ghana.
Gospel Context
West Africa is a meeting point of different religions. Islam, Tribal religions, and Christianity all exist in the region, and often not peacefully. People living in pluralistic and tribal cultures are in tune with spiritual realities that we often miss in the "enlightened" West. The power of Jesus' death and resurrection is best applied when people see its capacity to address the struggles of their everyday lives, often associated with spirits.
Learn more about the role of culture in contextualizing the gospel by reading The Global Gospel, written by Mission ONE Vice President, Werner Mischke.
