Five Catholic priests in Ghana’s Eastern Region have spent GH¢1.6 million of their own money to build a new church, so that families in four communities no longer have to travel for Sunday Mass.
The 300-seat St. John Vianney Catholic Church at Trom, in the New Juaben South Municipality, will serve residents of Trom, Bornya, Korle and Abansro. Until now, Catholics there travelled more than three miles to churches in Adweso, Koforidua and Old Estates, and many struggled to find taxis on Sundays.
The Bishop of Koforidua, Most Rev. Joseph Afrifah-Agyekum, dedicated the church. He said he had not seen anything like it in more than 40 years as a priest. The priests brought him the idea late last year and finished the building in eight months. “Thank you for this parish and for completing it in eight months,” the bishop said.
He added that the project showed buildings can be delivered at lower cost when resources are managed well, and urged government and other institutions to take note.
The five priests
The group was convened by Very Rev. Fr. Ebenezer Kenneth Abban, President of the Koforidua Diocesan Priests Association. He credited Very Rev. Fr. Joseph Quainoo Aggrey with starting the project. The other contributors were Rev. Fr. Michael Numekevor Jnr., the diocese’s civil lawyer; Rev. Fr. Eric Evans Akahono of Our Lady of Fatima, Akyem Oda; and Rev. Fr. Derrick Eyram Senanu of St. Peter, Somanya.
The Vicar General, Monsignor Francis Twum-Barimah, will lead the new church. It brings the diocese to 54 parishes and quasi-parishes.
For residents, the change is practical. One local woman, Francisca Ayitey, told the Ghanaian Times she had made the journey to Mass at St. Dominic even while pregnant.
Source: Ghanaian Times via allAfrica, 5 November 2026.
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