Published: October 21, 2025
Grafton, Sierra Leone – Eight years after its last gathering in Abidjan, Ivory Coast ,Young and Youth representatives from Sierra Leone, Liberia, Senegal, Nigeria, and Cameroon along with Bishops from their respective conferences have gathered and participated in the landmark Youth and Young Adults gathering organized by the West Africa Central Conference Youth &Young Adult Network of The United Methodist Church.
The West Africa Central Conference of The United Methodist Church consist of the Liberia ,Sierra Leone and Nigeria Annual Conferences with Nigeria providing supervision for the districts of Senegal and Cameroon.
The event, held at Grafton’s Pride Hotel just outside the Sierra Leonean capital Freetown, carried the theme: “Restructuring & Empowering Young People in West Africa.”
Several United Methodists from across the West Africa Central Conference(WACC), under the leadership of Bishop Samuel J. Quire Jr., President of the College of Bishops, participated in the (WACCYYN) gathering gaining knowledge and sharing experience.
The four-day event provided young people with opportunities to gain knowledge and skills from presentations by church leaders, including Dr. Victor Massaquoi, Lay-Leader of the Sierra Leone Annual Conference, and Alphdous Dupley, Chairperson of Youth and Young Adult Ministries of the Liberia Annual Conference,Bishop Ande I.Emmaunel of the Nigeria Annual Conference amongst others.
Dr. Massaquoi, who presented on “Contemporary Social Media Discourse: Opportunities & Challenges for Young People,” highlighted both the positive and negative uses of social media, noting that some former United Methodists are misusing platforms to discredit the Church in West Africa.
“Social media empower several young people globally,take advantage and use it for profit making which will empower you financially which will help significantly.”
At the gathering Bishop Quire emphasized that young people are the heartbeat of the Church. He noted that since Methodism arrived in West Africa in 1820, the Church has played a vital role in youth leadership, peace-building, gender mainstreaming, and nation-building.
Bishop Quire commended Rev.Ahmed Ayuba Ahmed, Acting Coordinator of West Africa Central Conference Young and Young Adults Network (WACCYYN) , for his dedication and commitment to rewakening the youth and young adult network.
Bishop Quire acknowledges that West Africa is faced with challenges including poverty, unemployment, corruption, and despair.
Bishop Quire encouraged young people to rise above fear and become agents of transformation in their communities. Quoting the Apostle Paul, he reminded participants:
“Let no one despise your youth, but set an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity.”
The President of West Africa Central Conference College of Bishops urged Youth and Young Adults to take bold steps in leadership, evangelism, technology, education, and advocacy, emphasizing that God has given their generation unique tools to make a lasting impact.
Bishop Quire also stressed the importance of unity and collaboration across the region, noting that despite cultural and national differences, all young people share one faith, one hope, one baptism, and one mission.
Bishop Quire highlighted the value of heritage and innovation “I encouraged young people to explore opportunities in youth leadership, agribusiness, ICT, AI,Chat GPT, and peace-building “.
The (WACC) President also recalled the words of John Wesley, founder of The United Methodist Church:”Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.”
For their outstanding leadership and commitment to The United Methodist Church , Bishop Quire,Bishop Emmanuel and Bishop Boyce-Caulker were honored with the prestigious “Father of Faith” Award by the West Africa Central Conference Youth and Young Adults Network. The inscription on the award reads:
“This award is giving in recognition of your excellent leadership in the United Methodist Church.”
Receiving the award Bishop Quire said “We are United Methodists, and United Methodists we will remain until death.” This statement shows his willingness to stand firm to United Methodism.
The acting coordinator of the (WACCYYN)Rev. Ahmed Ayouba Ahmeh extolled the three bishops for their unwavering support and dedication towards Youth and Young Adults in the West Africa Central Conference and The United Methodist Church.
Both Bishop Quire and Ande,share their life story and how they became bishop in their respective conferences with Youth and Young Adults representatives from the three annual conferences in West Africa.
The gathering was climaxed with a comunin ceremony and sight seeing with delegates visiting several United Methodist facilitaties in Freetown.
The gathering marked a significant milestone, reviving youth engagement after 8 years and setting the stage for continued empowerment of young people across West Africa following the death of Bishop John Yamabasu and the eruption of Ebola and CoVID 19.
Discussion about this post