ONE OF the United States’ oldest black church denominations, the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME) has formed a partnership with 19 black-owned banks in the country.

The partnership, called Black Wealth 2020 was developed from an initiative in Washington, DC in 2015 with the goal to implement an economic blueprint for black America by 2020.

Black Wealth 2020 wants to increase black homeownership to over 50 per cent nationwide. It wants to increase the number of black businesses from 2.6 million to four million and total average turnover from $72,500 to $150,000. Black Wealth 2020 seeks to raise the amount of money saved and nances loaned from black banks.

There are currently more than 6,000 AME churches in America and work has begun to achieve the goals set out in Black Wealth 2020.

One Episcopal District has partnered with black banks and seen a rise in the amount of money saved. In a statement issued by the AME council of Bishops, they wrote: “The African Methodist Episcopal Church is excited about the possibilities this partnership with black banks across the United States provides.

“In fact, the possibilities extend beyond the borders of the United States, but throughout the Diaspora. The African Methodist Episcopal Church has over 4,000 churches in Africa, the Caribbean, West Indies and Europe.”