Kumasi, July 3,GNA - The Gospel Centre Assemblies of God Church at Old Tafo in the Kumasi metropolis is to institute scholarship scheme for a number of brilliant but needy students of the Church this year. The scheme, which forms part of the social responsibility of the Church, will benefit pupils in the basic level and students in the second cycle schools and tertiary institutions.

The Reverend John Kwabena Boakye, Superintendent Minister in-charge of the Church who disclosed this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on Saturday on his new vision and programmes for the Church, said the scheme is aimed at providing education for these categories of students who would have lost the opportunity to be educated. He said the Church would embark on the HIV/AIDS educational campaign to sensitise both members and non-members of the church to help reduce the spread of the pandemic, which is assuming an alarming problem.

Rev Boakye said he would also introduce sound Bible teaching and prayers to enrich the spiritual lives of church members. The Church, he said, would also organise a series of seminars and marriage counselling to help improve their family lives in order to fight child delinquency and streetism, which have become social cankers. The Superintendent Minister said arrangements were far advanced for the construction of a new mission house complex, made up of a car park, conference halls, offices, stores and restaurant estimated at several millions of cedis as part of a five-year development plan.

Rev. Boakye stated that members of the church would be supported with credit facilities from the church's credit union to enable them, especially the women to undertake income-generating ventures to improve their lot. He stressed the need for the members to unite and gear their efforts towards the growth and development of the church. The Supt. Minister was not happy about the behaviour of some pastors whose aim was to amass wealth at the expense of the development of the church and advised them to stop the practice.