By Ben Ngwakwe, Gombe
The Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) has announced the formation of a new governing body, the Global Anglican Council, marking a significant structural shift in the leadership of the global Anglican movement.
At the conference held in Abuja, delegates unanimously elected Laurent Mbanda, Archbishop of Rwanda, as Chairman of the newly created council. Miguel Uchoa was elected Vice-Chairman, while Paul Donison will serve as General Secretary.
The development follows a decision by GAFCON primates to dissolve the GAFCON Primates Council, which has led the movement since its establishment in 2008.
The new structure is designed to broaden leadership participation within the communion.
In a statement issued Thursday by Donison, the GAFCON General Secretary, the move was described as a deliberate step to create a more inclusive leadership system within the Global Anglican movement.
According to the statement, the Global Anglican Council will include primates, advisers and guarantors, as well as bishops, clergy and lay members—each with full voting rights.
“The expanded council reflects the willingness of the primates to share their authority with a wider group of global Anglican leaders, both lay and clergy,” the statement said.
Under the new structure, the chairman of the council will be a primate but will not function as primus inter pares—a Latin term meaning “first among equals.”
GAFCON leaders said the decision reflects the belief that existing Instruments of Communion within the wider Anglican structure no longer adequately serve the majority of Anglicans worldwide.
As a result, the movement intends to adopt what it described as a “conciliar structure” of governance.
The council also resolved that primates who retire from their provincial offices between GAFCON assemblies may continue to serve on the council until the conclusion of the next assembly.
The tenure of the newly elected council members will run until the end of the next conference, GAFCON V, scheduled to take place in Athens in 2028.
Describing the development as a turning point, the statement noted that the creation of the Global Anglican Council represents a historic moment for the Global Anglican Communion and signals a new phase in its governance and mission.
