General Information on The Anglican Church of Cape Coast

The following information is taken from the history section of the Cape Coast Diocesan web page.  You can learn more about their ministry and projects here:  

http://capecoast.anglican.org/capecoast/Diocese.html

The Anglican Diocese of Cape Coast is co-terminus with the Central Regional Administrative area of Ghana, with Cape Coast as the seat of the Diocesan Bishop. The size of the region is 3815 square miles with a total population of 1,593,000 and the percentage of Christians is 46%.

At its inception in 1981 the Anglican Diocese of Cape Coast had one Archdeaconry and six priests who ministered to 24 congregations in six parishes, with a total numerical strength of 3000 members.

Ghana as a whole covers an area of 239,460 square kilometres with a total population of about 20 million. The Diocese is one of the seven Anglican Dioceses in Ghana; the oldest is Accra, established in 1909. Kumasi was carved from Accra in 1973, followed by Cape Coast, Koforidua – Ho, Sekondi and Sunyami – Tamale in 1981. In February 1997 Sunyami – Tamale was divided into two autonomous units, Sunyami Diocese and Tamale Diocese.

Cape Coast Diocese can currently boast of five Archdeaconries and five Deaneries. There are 21 priests currently ministering to 37 congregations in sixteen parishes and six Titular parishes with a total membership of nine thousand five hundred members. There are also twelve Catechists serving in some of the outstations.

Post Ordination training and development of the Clergy and Laity for effective mission and ministry in the Diocese is of great importance to the leadership of the Diocese. A good number of the Clergy have thus benefited from U.S.P.G. bursaries for overseas training, whilst some of the laity have also benefited from overseas training sponsored by the Diocese. Beside the USPG funding for overseas training, the Diocese encourages the Clergy and Laity to make use of local institutions e.g. the Universities and GIMPA.

The role of the Diocese in the development of education in the Central Region cannot be over emphasized. There are 54 Day Nurseries, 62 Primary Schools and 74 Junior Secondary Schools under the administration of the Anglican Educational Unit. There are two Senior Secondary Schools in the Diocese.

With regard to the provision of health care the Diocese has two medical facilities: a health Clinic at Dominasi in the Upper Denkyira District and an Eye Clinic at Cape Coast. There is yet a third clinic to be established at Birimso, a village near Cape Coast.

To enhance and facilitate the training of evangelists, Catechists, Guild and society leaders and other Church workers the Diocese has acquired a property to be used as a Retreat and Lay training Centre.

It is hoped that with the acquisition of the property for the above purpose, more evangelists, catechists and other lay workers and leaders can be trained to assist with the mission and ministry of the Diocese. It is worth mentioning that the property was acquired with a Festina from USPG.

To promote evangelism and the printing of Christian literature the Diocese has established a Desktop Printing Unit in addition to the Printing Press, also through a Festina Loan obtained from USPG. The Desktop Unit also serves as a source of income for the Diocese.

The plan of the Diocese to establish an Apprenticeship Centre for the youth in the region, for them to learn a trade and enable them to earn a living has not yet been abandoned. The project is still on the priority list of the Diocese, despite the financial loss experienced by the Diocese in 1995.

The Diocese since its creation has struggled to survive until now, the first two bishops have done their part by laying the foundation. The vision and the zeal they had, to spread the Gospel, to open more Anglican Churches in the region, to build a Spirit-led church, and to put the Diocese on a sound financial footing should vigorously be pursued and sustained for the advancement of the mission and ministry of the Diocese.