Ibrahim Barsha becomes interim national imam of ASWAJ in Ghana
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on MyJoyOnline
Sheikh Ibrahim Barsha has accepted the position of interim national imam of Ahlussunna Wal Jama'a in Ghana after his appointment by the National Da'awa Council. He succeeds Sheikh Umar Ibrahim Imam, removed earlier this week, according to MyJoyOnline.
Sheikh Ibrahim Barsha accepted the position of interim national imam of Ahlussunna Wal Jama'a (ASWAJ), a Ghanaian Sunni Islamic movement, on Friday 6 November 2026, after Jumu'ah prayers at Al Bayan Mosque in Tamale. His appointment by the National Da'awa Council (NADAC), the council responsible for succession within ASWAJ, comes after the removal of Sheikh Umar Ibrahim Imam earlier in the week, according to MyJoyOnline.
Sheikh Ibrahim Barsha, also known as Ibrahim Basha Iddris, Mallam Basha and Sheikh Bayaan, founded the Nuriyya Islamic Institute in Tamale in 1969. He is notably described as one of the initiators of the transformation of traditional madrasas into Anglo-Arabic schools and as a pioneer in the creation of the Ghana Islamic Education Unit, which oversees Islamic education in the country, according to MyJoyOnline.
For his interim tenure, Sheikh Ibrahim Barsha set four priorities: ensuring continuity of ASWAJ's administration and activities, promoting reconciliation among leaders and scholars, strengthening administrative structures and archives in accordance with the association's constitution, and working with NADAC to select or elect a permanent national imam, according to MyJoyOnline.
