During a North Carolina conference in early May, the United Methodist Church - a global denomination of Protestantism based in the US - changed some regulations to allow gay pastors and same-sex marriage.

The Ivory Coast division - which has an estimated 1.2 million followers - responded by accusing the international leaders of 'deviating from the Holy Scriptures' and 'sacrificing its honour and integrity to honour the LGBTQ community'.

Bishop Benjamin Boni, president of the division, said it voted to separate from the umbrella church during a May 28 gathering in the Jubilee Temple of Cocody, Abidjan, on the southern coast of the West African country.

In a statement, he said the decision to separate after more than 20 years was made 'for reasons of conscience'.

Read More