The high import duties and depreciation of the Cedis have drastically increased the price of Bibles in Ghana
Nine years ago, a 40-foot container of Bibles could be cleared for GHC 150,000, but now the same shipment requires over GHC 630,000.
The sharp increase compelled the Bible Society of Ghana,an organization dedicated to making the word of God accessible and affordable, to raise its prices, despite its historical commitment to maintaining low costs.
In November 2022, the Bible Society announced a necessary upward price adjustment due to inflation and escalating import expenses.
“Due to the high rate of inflation and high cost of clearing [goods] from the ports, our prices of Bibles would be slightly reviewed upwards,” stated the notice.
The increment is despite huge subsidy by the Society purging Bible Price to GHC 350 .
A very heartwarming gesture which consequently worsens the financial challenges of Bible Society of Ghana.
The financial difficulty is further compounded by a decline in external donor funding, making the Bible Society of Ghana increasingly reliant on a handful generosity of local Christians.
The society is faced with huge burden of funding cost of Bible translation into different Ghanaian languages.
Translation is both time-consuming and costly.
Translating the Bible into local languages involves teams of translators and reviewers and can take between 12-16 years to complete a full translation.
It is done from the original source languages: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek.
Currently, 9 fully completed Bible translations have been done by the Bible Society of Ghana since its establishment in 1967.
These are Ga,Asante-Twi, Ewe, Mfantse
,Dangme, Akuapem- Twi, Nzema,Esahie
and ,Dagbani Bibles.
Ongoing projects aim to add Gurune, Dagaare, Effutu-Senya, and Okere to this list, alongside a Braille version for the visually impaired.
Translation of the Bible cost US$20 per verse from the original languages:
Hebrews/Aramaic for the Old Testament
Greek for the New Testament.
There are 31,103 verses in the Bible:Old Testament = 23,145 verses; New Testament = 7,967 verses.
This bring the total cost of translation to US$622,060 per Bible which converts to Ghc8,708,840 in current exchange rate of ghc14 to a dollar.
Ghanaian language translated Bibles are mostly Printed in South Korea.
With over 70% of Ghana’s population identifying as Christian, the Bible’s influence permeates various facets of our lives including government, education, literature, and art and shaping moral standards.
In times of economic hardship and widespread despondency, the scriptures offer hope and inspiration to many Ghanaians.
State intervention to support the Bible Society of Ghana will not be far fetched.
Tax relief and other measures could alleviate the financial pressures, ensuring that Bibles remain affordable and accessible to all Ghanaians.
In a country where the Bible plays a pivotal role in daily life and offers solace during challenging times, supporting the Bible Society of Ghana is more than a religious obligation.
Source:Mybrytfmonline.com/writer/Obed Annor Ansah Journalist
