When President Gordon B. Hinckley traveled to Africa two weeks ago he announced plans to build an LDS temple in Accra, Ghana. And, thousands of Latter-day Saints viewed the surprise announcement, as an answer to their prayers.

News Specialist Duane Cardall joins us from the newsroom, with another installment in his series "President Hinckley: Out of Africa." Duane, just how did they react to the news?

With spontaneous applause. They were, without question, extremely excited and many would say, with good reason.

Kofi Opare is as devoted to the LDS church as a man can be. He is a returned missionary and currently serves as Bishop of Christiansburg Ward in Accra, Ghana. But Bishop Opare is not "endowed" as Mormons call it. He has never been to one of the church's temples, never participated in those special rites and ordinances:

((BISHOP KOFI OPARE, CHRISTIANSBORG WARD: "IT IS DIFFICULT WHEN YOU ARE EXPLAINING THINGS ABOUT TEMPLE TO PEOPLE."))

A trip to a temple is an enormously expensive and difficult undertaking, hence many West Africans have not yet done it. So you can imagine their joy when President Gordon B. Hinckley came to their land with an unexpected announcement.

((PRES. GORDON B. HINCKLEY, THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS: "THIS MORNING WE APPROVED THE PURCHASE OF A BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF GROUND ON WHICH WE PROPOSE TO BUILD A TEMPLE IN ACCRA, GHANA."))

(("WE HAVE PRAYED FOR A TEMPLE AND NOW A TEMPLE IS THERE. AH, WE ARE VERY GRATEFUL."))

(("OH, I'M SO EXCITED. VERY, VERY EXCITED ABOUT THIS AND WE'LL DO OUR BEST TO MAKE SURE IT COMES."))

((PRES. EMMANUEL OPARE, ACCRA GHANA CHRISTIANSBORG STAKE: "WE ARE GONNA GET READY. EVEN IF WE'RE NOT READY WE ARE GOING TO GET READY AND NOW WE ARE GONNA WORK VERY, VERY HARD TO BE WORTHY OF THE TEMPLE."))

(("THIS IS WHERE THE TEMPLE LIKELY WILL BE BUILT--THREE ACRES NEAR THE MIDDLE OF DOWNTOWN ACCRA."))

And while, this site has been purchased and plans are moving ahead for the building's construction, President Hinckley seems determined it won't be the only new temple in Africa.

((PRES. HINCKLEY: "I LOOK FOR THE TIME, I FEEL SATISFIED THE TIME WILL COME AFTER BEING HERE ON THIS LONG TRIP THAT WE'LL HAVE TEMPLES IN ALL OF THE MAJOR COUNTRIES OF AFRICA."))

The people of Ghana cheered when the temple was announced and after the meeting greeted one another with obvious excitement. Billy Johnson could hardly contain his joy. Back in the 1960's and without priesthood authority, he organized and led an "unofficial" congregation of Mormons. With the 1978 change in priesthood policy, missionaries baptized his entire congregation and now he serves in his local stake as a patriarch:

((J.W.B. "BILLY" JOHNSON, GHANA: "IT'S THE BIGGEST NEWS SO FAR BECAUSE THIS IS WHAT WE'VE BEEN CRYING FOR."))

And it's what Bishop Kofi Opare and his wife Theresa have been praying for:

(("OH, IT'S GOING TO MEAN A LOT AND IT'S GOING TO BE VERY CHALLENGING BECAUSE MY GOAL IS TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL THE ENTIRE MEMBERSHIP OF THE CHRISTIANSBURG WARD GO TO THE TEMPLE."))

President Hinckley said it will probably take two or three years to build the new Ghana Temple, and he encouraged the people there to begin preparing now, for the day it will be dedicated.