Ghana Missionary Training Center Resumes In-Person Training

The Ghana Missionary Training Center (Ghana MTC) in Accra has reopened its doors for in-person missionary training.  The Ghana MTC is one of two international Missionary Training Centers to reopen at this time, along with the New Zealand MTC. The Provo Missionary Training Center also started receiving missionaries. Missionaries started arriving at the Ghana MTC during the week of June 21^st in preparation for their training.  Missionaries came from various countries across Africa, including Ghana, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Rwanda and Uganda, excited to start their missions. In the next week additional missionaries from Eswantini and Namibi will be arriving to begin their service.

The Ghana MTC reopened with forty-eight missionaries and for the first few groups the numbers will remain around fifty missionaries. The numbers will gradually increase as the conditions permit. The leaders and staff are doing everything possible to keep the missionaries safe from any COVID exposure. All COVID protocols are being followed.

All the current missionaries in the Ghana MTC are English speaking and will be going to Ghana, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Uganda, and Kenya which are English speaking missions in Africa. Missionaries speaking their own language are at the Ghana MTC for three weeks. The Ghana MTC teaches French, English, Swahili, and Amharic which is spoken in Ethiopia.  All missionaries learning languages are currently doing this from home in a virtual home MTC setting. Once the Ghana MTC is reopened for teaching languages, the missionaries learning French or Swahili will stay for six weeks and those learning English or Amharic will be at the Ghana MTC for nine weeks.

The Ghana MTC President, Paul Craig along with Sister Nadine Craig welcomed the 48 missionaries in a welcome devotional that also included 120 missionaries that are at their in-home MTC, studying languages and preparing for their missions. The 120 missionaries in the virtual MTC come from the same countries, plus the Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Benin, Cameroon, Zambia, United States of America, a few European countries and even some Polynesian countries. The Ghana MTC sees missionaries, on an average year, coming from fifty-five to sixty countries and then going out to fifty to fifty-seven different countries.

Globally, MTCs have remained operational during the pandemic by providing virtual training to new missionaries. A total of 32,000 missionaries received online training since March of 2020. Currently, 2,766 missionaries are involved in online MTC training. Missionary Training Centers in the Philippines, Mexico and England are also in the process of preparing to train missionaries in person, beginning in late July and August and others will follow as local conditions improve.