OUR bishop will make his second visit to Ghana in two years when he flies out today. (April 19)

Bishop Christopher at the Nwakie Retreat Centre with Bishop Daniel Sarfo, now Archbishop of Ghana

Bishop Christopher aims to strengthen relationships between the Anglican churches in his diocese and those in Ghana between now and May 1.

He previously visited in October 2011, when he spent 10 days visiting six of Ghana’s 10 dioceses. On that visit he made a public promise to return, to develop the friendships made and visit each of the remaining dioceses.

The bishop will be joined by his wife, the Rev Sally Davenport, vicar of Holy Trinity and St Columba, Fareham; diocesan spirituality adviser the Rev Dr Ruth Tuschling; and our Inter-Diocesan West Africa Link (IDWAL) chairman Canon Terry Louden, who is also vicar of East Meon and Langrish.

The centrepiece of his trip will be a three-day Clergy School at the Nkawie Retreat Centre in the Diocese of Kumasi. Ruth Tuschling will lead sessions for clergy, and the bishop, Sally Davenport and Terry Louden will also contribute.

Christians across Portsmouth’s Anglican diocese gave generously to help open the retreat centre and Bishop Christopher was involved in its consecration on his previous visit. These three days will focus on what clergy can learn from different Christian spiritual traditions.

The bishop will preach at Christ Church Cathedral in Cape Coast diocese, and travel to the Diocese of Tamale, in the north of Ghana, and visit the Dioceses of Koforidua and Dunkwa.

He will also visit the College of Health in Kintampo, where hundreds of new community mental health workers are being trained with the support of the Kintampo Trust, a charity established by NHS mental health professionals in Hampshire. It has increased the number of trained mental health workers by 17 per cent since 2011.

The Kintampo Project is a link between the College of Health in Ghana and Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust in Hampshire. Volunteers from Southern Health have been working with Ghanaian colleagues since 2007 to develop new training programmes and create a new mental health workforce for the country.

All dioceses in England have an overseas partner, and Portsmouth’s official overseas link is with the Anglican Church in Ghana via the Inter-Diocesan West Africa Link (IDWAL).

Bishop Christopher said: “This trip will be a great opportunity to build on the strong relationships developed over many years of this link with the dioceses in Ghana. I experienced vitality of faith and witness during our last visit, and my colleagues and I are looking forward to meeting new friends and making new connections.”

Dr Mark Roberts, the UK lead for the Kintampo Project, and a Fareham-based NHS psychiatrist said: “We welcome the bishop’s work in Ghana to gain an understanding of mental health from the perspective of the Ghanaian clergy. Forging strong relationships between health workers and the clergy is key to reaching and supporting people with mental illness, and the Portsmouth delegation’s work will be a big step towards achieving this.”