umbrella organisation
An umbrella organization is an association of (often related, industry-specific) institutions who work together formally to coordinate activities and/or pool resources. In business, political, and other environments, it provides resources and ofte ...
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
.
History
The Christian Association of Nigeria was founded in 1976, and originally only contained the Catholic Church and mainline
Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
groups. However, it later expanded to include
Pentecostal
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestantism, Protestant Charismatic Christianity, Charismatic Christian movementSharia law in northern states. In February 2006, while President of the organisation, Akinola issued a statement in response to
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
violence against Christians, telling Muslims that they did not have a "monopoly on violence". The following day, Christians rioted in retaliation against Muslims, leading to more than 70 deaths. Akinola later claimed his statements had been misinterpreted in the western media. He even threatened to resign in case the riots should continue.
On 2 May 2004, more than 630 christian were killed in
Yelwa Yelwa is a town in Kebbi State, Nigeria on the Niger River and the A1 highway. The town is often referred to as "Yelwa, Yauri", after the Emirate and Local Government Administration it is in, and is not the Yelwa where the Yelwa Massacre took pl ...
,
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
. The dead were pinned white name tags identifying them as members of the CAN. The massacre is known as the Yelwa massacre.
In September 2007, the organisation endorsed a
social security
Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifical ...
Sule Lamido
Sule Lamido was born on (30 August 1948) served as Foreign Affairs Minister of Nigeria from 1999 to 2003.
He was elected governor of Jigawa State in April 2007.
He is a member of the former ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP).
He ran successfu ...
.
Organisation
The organisation is made up of five blocs; they are the
Christian Council of Nigeria
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestantism, Protestant Charismatic Christianity, Charismatic Christian movementOrganisation of African Instituted Churches The Organization of African Instituted Churches (OAIC) is a Christian ecumenical organization founded in 1978. It is a member of the World Council of Churches. It describes itself as "the representative body that brings together African Independent ...
, and the
Evangelical Church Winning All
The Evangelical Church Winning All, previously known as the Evangelical Church of West Africa, is one of the largest Christian denominations in Nigeria, with about ten million members. ECWA is a partner church of the international Christian missi ...
/
Fellowship of Churches of Christ in Nigeria The Fellowship of Churches of Christ in Nigeria (TEKAN) is a federation of Christian denominations in Nigeria. It was founded in 1955. Its president is Nemuel Abubakar Babba.
Members
*Church of Christ in Nigeria (COCIN)
* The Lutheran Church of C ...
.
The CAN has Women and Youth Wings, a National Executive Council consisting of 105 members (which elects the President), and a General Assembly of 304 members (which ratifies the President's election).
Leadership
In 2016,
Supo Ayokunle
Samson Olasupo Adeniyi Ayokunle, CON (born January 25, 1957) commonly known as Supo Ayokunle is a Nigerian pastor and administrator. He was the 7th president of the Christian Association of Nigeria. He was also the 6th President of the Nigerian B ...
, President (and Chief Executive Officer) of
The Nigerian Baptist Convention
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
, was elected as president and Prof.
Joseph Otubu
Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
, of the Motailatu Church Cherubim and Seraphim Movement, the Vice President.
Ayokunle was re-elected for second term and inaugurated in July 2019 alongside his Vice President Rev Dr. Caleb Ahima.
In July 2022,
Daniel Okoh
Most Rev. Daniel C. Okoh is General Overseer of the Christ Holy Church International, a.k.a. Nation Builders, a former vice President of the Christian Association of Nigeria
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) is an umbrella organisation ...
was elected as the present president of the association