Features
Elder Samuel Anini’s achievements
Elder Samuel Anini, Church of Pentecost, Finland
Today, Elder Samuel Yaw Anini is my focus on personalities and their accomplishments as members of the Ghanaian Diaspora in Finland.
Elder Anini is a well-respected senior member of the Ghanaian community in Finland. He is a man of many hats—an Elder of The Church of Pentecost in Finland (COP), an astute entrepreneur, a former President and currently a Patron of the Ghana Union Finland (GUF), which is an association of the Ghanaian migrant community in Finland.
He moved to Finland in 1996 and lived in Oulu, a city in the northern part of Finland. Before he travelled to Finland, Elder Anini worked with the Ghana Police Service, and once in Finland, he furthered his education. He later started a restaurant with some friends he met in that school, including a Pakistani, a Bangladeshi, and an Indian, with whom he studied the same course.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND HONOURS
It is only fair to give to readers Elder Anini’s accomplishments. As I wrote the last time, I recount accomplishments as part of the success stories of the personalities of Ghanaian descent in Finland to highlight their exploits both within the Ghanaian migrant community and in the wider Finnish society.
In July last year, Elder Anini received an award at the prestigious Predecessors Awards 2023 (Europe Edition), which is given to deserving individuals for their leadership roles. Indeed, Elder Anini and the late Sir Wilberforce Essandor, a versatile senior statesman, who was awarded posthumously at that ceremony, are arguably among people regarded as the pillars in the Ghana Union Finland and the Ghanaian migrant community as a whole. (Sir Wilberforce, who was the other Patron of the Union, died in May 2021).
Elder Anini’s other accomplishment involves a feat which was rare at the time it was accomplished, and he duly received the recognition. That is, he became the first Black or African migrant in Oulu to establish his own company. This attracted so much media attention and he was featured extensively in Finnish newspapers.
RELIGIOUS LIFE
In spite of his busy working life and other commitments, Elder Anini is someone who takes his religious life seriously. He is currently a national executive member of The Church of Pentecost in Finland (COP).
He was previously the Presiding Elder and until recently, he was the national Secretary of the church.
Indeed, Elder Anini has been one of the pioneers when The Church of Pentecost in Finland was established about 20 years ago, started in September 2000 as a prayer group with a small number of devoted persons in Helsinki.
He plays a key role in the English Assembly (or the PIWC) of The Church of Pentecost in Helsinki, which is attended by other nationalities and African migrants, aside Ghanaian migrants. The other branch is the Akan Assembly where worship is done mostly in the Twi language.
ASTUTE ENTREPRENEUR
As already mentioned, Elder Anini opened a restaurant with his student colleagues but the restaurant was closed as they all found other work schedules.
Elder Anini then worked at two other places, including the K-Market group, which is a chain shopping outlet mainly dealing with groceries. The Finnish owner of the K-Market became his very good friend and a father-figure and they have kept close contact till today. He has even visited Ghana with the Finnish businessman, which indicates a highly positive relationship.
Elder Anini later established his own cleaning company in 1999. It was indeed a first for an African/ Ghanaian migrant (‘foreigner’) to achieve that feat. As I have mentioned already, it was such a novelty that the Finnish newspapers gave him much publicity as the first ‘foreigner’ to start his own cleaning company.
His cleaning company has employed over 40 people, made up of mostly Ghanaian migrants and others, as employees. He also gives sub-contracts to other Ghanaian migrants with their own cleaning companies.
Through such moves, Elder Anini helps other Ghanaian migrants to earn a decent living. As he explained, he employs people because “it gives me joy to help, knowing that it will be a blessing to them.” The company, Sam-siivouspalvelu/Samphones, also deals in the sale of mobile phones in Ghana.
In addition, he has a real estate company in Ghana, known as SamAnini ESTATE.
HIS ROLE IN THE GHANAIAN COMMUNITY
Elder Anini has been very active in the Ghanaian community. He is still very active in the Ghana Union Finland, and has chaired many functions organised by the Union, as a non-governmental organisation for the Ghanaian migrant community in Finland.
As mentioned earlier, Elder Anini is currently the Patron of the Ghana Union Finland. He is also a former President of the Union.
Elder Anini has been a counsellor and mentor who has guided many young Ghanaian migrants on their career paths.
He now lives in Vantaa (in the greater Helsinki Metropolitan area) with his wife and their four children, one of whom is an accomplished footballer who plays for one of the top Finnish football teams (I hope to write about him in due course). Thank you!
By Perpetual Crentsil
Email: perpetualcrentsil@yahoo.com
Today, I focus on the Apostolic Church International in Finland, as I continue with my description of institutions and personalities and their accomplishments as members of the Ghanaian Diaspora in Finland.
The Apostolic Church International, Finland (or, Apostolic International Association Ry) was established in October 9, 2023. The Church in Finland has seen significant strides and accomplishments within the short time that it has been established in Finland, which must be highlighted.
History of the Church in Ghana
The Apostolic Church Ghana originated from the 1904–1905 Welsh revival, officially established in Ghana (then called Gold Coast) in 1935 following connections between a local prayer group in Asamankese (a town in southern Ghana), led by Peter Newman Anim, and the Apostolic Church, UK. There were historical splits in 1939 and 1953, but the Apostolic Church attained autonomy in 1985.
Today, the Church is headquartered in Accra. Last year (2025), it dedicated its new 10-storey headquarters, “The Apostolic Church Tower,” in Frafraha, Adenta West in Accra.
Activities of the Apostolic Church in Finland
The Apostolic Church in Finland conducts church service on Sundays. The service starts at 11a.m. in the morning and closes by 1 p.m. in the afternoon. There are no other activities during other days for now.
The Minister in charge of the church in Finland is also the Area Head of Italy Area. He is Pastor Daniel Kofi Addison who is the new Italy Area Head, and has just been transferred from UK South Area to Italy Area during the just-ended Council Meeting in March this year. Italy Area comprises Italy, which has 13 Assemblies, Germany, one Assembly, and Finland, one Assembly.
Elder Ebenezer Amoaning-Coffie is the Presiding Elder in charge of the Assembly in Finland. A Presiding Elder is responsible for day to day activities of the church (Assembly) and reports to the District Pastor, or in the absence of the District Pastor, reports to the Area Head.
Achievements
The Apostolic Church International, Finland was officially registered under the Finnish Law, guaranteeing freedom of worship and providing legal foundation for future growth. The church service is conducted in both English and Twi.
The church opens its doors to all people of every nation, especially Ghanaians who are in Finland and other African nationals. Now, the membership comprises Ghanaians, Nigerians and Sierra Leoneans.
The Church and the Ghanaian migrant community in Finland
The Apostolic Church in Finland plays a prominent role as a religious group that serves Ghanaian migrants and others in the Finnish society.
Thus, the Apostolic Church is a religious body for Ghanaian migrants in Finland and other nationalities who want to worship with them for diversity and better intercultural and multicultural understanding.
Elder Amoaning-Coffie said that the main and primary aim of the church is to bring people closer to God. “We aim to win souls for Christ. We aim to preach the gospel to the world. By propagating the gospel to the people, we are hopeful that they will turn away from any ungodly ways and be good individuals in the community and in society in general”, he stated.
He said that everything is going well so far. A key challenge, however, is how to get more members especially the youth. As a new Assembly, we are in need of instrumentalists, for example. We pray to God Almighty to help us do His work, the Elder disclosed.
Integration
By its activities, the Apostolic Church is helping to ensure integration of its members well into the Finish society. This is important since social interaction and citizens’ well-being are an important part of the integration process in Finland.
As I mentioned some time ago, the role of migrant associations and groups such as the Apostolic Church acting as bridge-builders for the integration and inclusion of migrants through participation in the decision making process and by acting as a representative voice is highly appreciated in Finland. Thank you!
With Dr Perpetual Crentsil
The landscape of the Ghanaian palate is shifting, and not necessarily for the better. In our bustling urban centres, from the streets of Accra to the suburbs of Kumasi, a quiet culinary revolution is taking place; one where the mortar and pestle are being replaced by the pizza oven and the deep fryer. This transition from traditional staple foods like fufu, banku, akple, kenkey, tuo zaafi, and ampesi toward “continental” dishes is more than just a change in appetite; it is a reflection of a deeper social struggle with identity and prestige.
The illusion of modernity
For many, “stepping out” for a meal has become synonymous with consuming foreign cuisine. There is an unspoken social hierarchy where a bowl of Abunuabunu is relegated to the village category, while burgers, pizzas are branded as prestigious choices. We have reached a stage where we equate foreign with modern and local with primitive.
This perception is a dangerous illusion. Our traditional dishes are marvels of culinary engineering complex, nutrient-dense, and deeply rooted in our history. When we choose a processed foreign import over a meal made from local tubers or fermented maize, we are not just changing our lunch; we are eroding the indigenous knowledge attached to our local ingredients and foods.
We need to turn the consumption of indigenous grains and tubers like millet, sorghum, and plantain into a statement of self-worth and national pride.
The cultural and health erosion
Every time a local dish disappears from a restaurant menu to make room for foreign fast food, we lose a piece of our cultural fabric. Traditional Ghanaian cooking is an art that requires patience and skill. By choosing the convenience of foreign fast food, we are raising a generation that may know the taste of a pepperoni pizza but cannot identify the rich, earthy profile of Prekese or the subtle tang of well-fermented dough dishes like corn porridge, banku, etew, abolo, agidi or kamfa, and kenkey.
Furthermore, we are at the crossroads of a nutrition transition. Replacing high-fiber, indigenous crops with calorie-dense but nutrient-poor foreign fast foods is driving a rise in lifestyle diseases such as obesity, hypertension, diabetes, stroke, cancer, and liver disease. We are trading our longevity for 15-minutes convenience or unhealthy diet.
A call for culinary patriotism
It is time for us to appreciate, preserve, and promote our indigenous foods and culinary traditions. We need to be proud of our local dishes, ingredients and cooking methods, rather than relying heavily on foreign or imported foods. We must stop viewing our local delicacies as low-class and start treating our culinary heritage as the high-end gastronomy it truly is.
True sophistication does not come from imitating Western fast food; it comes from innovation and adding values to our own resources. We see glimpses of this potential in the rise of branded Sobolo and the creative use of gluten-free plantain flour in modern baking of flour-based dishes such as bread, cakes, biscuits and others. This is the path forward. We must elevate our local dishes, making them as accessible, affordable, presentable and trendy as any foreign alternative.
To the hospitality industry: Innovate or stagnate
Our hotels and high-end restaurants must lead the charge. They must stop relegating local dishes to the “traditional corner” of the buffet, and apply the same culinary finesse given to imported dishes to our Fante Fante, apapransa, aborbi tadi, fetritoto, akple, abolo, yakayeke, fufu, ampesi, kokonte, wasawasa, tubani, apapransa, mpotompoto, kelewele, aliha, brukutu, pito, and other local dishes. The industry must enhance customer experiences making eating local dishes the ultimate luxury experience for both tourists and residents alike. We must elevate the presentation of our foods by using modern plating techniques to show that a bowl of light soup can be as visually stunning as a French consommé. We need to reclaim our Ghanaian plate before it is too late.
To the policy makers: Let us encourage buying of local ingredients to promote the local food industry and economy. There should be educational programmes and talks about the nutritional and cultural benefits of local foods so that people understand their value.
We need to encourage serving traditional dishes at school programmes, parties, and celebrations instead of only fast foods,
To the Youth: Let us value and appreciate our traditional dishes instead of always choosing foreign foods. There must be balance in our choice of local and foreign dishes. Confidence in our culture encourages others to respect it too. Our local dishes can also be promoted by sharing pictures, recipes, and videos on platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp to make them attractive and trendy.
Young citizens must learn from their parents and elders how to prepare local meals to keep the knowledge and cultural relevance alive. Local dishes can be modernised to appeal to younger generations and tourists.
Conclusion
We cannot afford to trade our heritage for foreign cuisines which are gaining grounds across the country at an alarming rate. We must disabuse our minds of the perception that anything foreign or imported is better than those locally made. Our health, economy, and identity are tied to the soil. It is time to stop apologising for our local flavours and start celebrating them. It is possible to embrace modernity without losing ourselves and our cultural identity. Let us make the Ghanaian kitchen the heart of our modern identity once again.
By: Marilyn Gadogbe
