President Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo has urged churches and its leadership to inculcate spiritual virtues in its congregation particularly the youth, for national development.

Inaugurating the Tema Children Church on Sunday, the President said the church and its members must not neglect its pious responsibility of achieving a prosperous Ghana.

“I urge members of the Community 5 District Apostolic Church and to all faithful disciples of Christ, to rise to their religious responsibilities and stimulate the desired motivational spirit of renewal and transformation towards effective nation-building” he stated.

He added, “the growth of the church should be measured not only by the number of its followers but also, in the quality of its members who are dedicated to upholding the spiritual virtues of Jesus Christ and who will want to help build a progressive, prosperous Ghana strongly anchored on the love of God.”

With the Tema Children’s Church of the Apostolic Church-Ghana, being the first of its kind to be built solely for the purpose of reaching out to children and the youth in Tema and its environs, he tasked members of the church to teach the children “to love God with all their hearts, souls, strengths and minds. And love their neighbours as they would to themselves’ as stated by St Luke.”

“The most important asset of any nation is its people especially its youth. As I look into the eyes of these children, I know I look into the eyes of Ghana’s future.”

“They remind me that as President, I must work hard to guarantee that knowledge becomes the backbone of our modern economy and prosperity,” he said.

President Akufo-Addo further asked churches to pray for him and his government to enable them serve the nation in humility and integrity.

He assured the congregation that he is still committed to his vision of improving the living conditions of all Ghanaians.

“I believe we can and we should be able to build a Ghana with the use of our own resources and their proper management as a way to engineer social and economic growth in our country,” he said.