Meeting of the African Mission Commission
The African Mission Commission (AMC) held its second annual meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, from Aug. 16 – 21 with the presence of all its members. Brothers Carlos Alberto Rojas Carvajal and Mark Omede, directors of the Secretariat of Mission, Brother Valdícer Fachi, director of Collaboration for Mission, International (Cmi) also attended.
The members of the AMC are Brothers John Yaw Kusi-Mensah from Ghana, Francis Jumbe from Malawi, Michel Longena Bokolu from Congo, Michel Maminiaina Razafimandimbyfrom Madagascar and Ifeanyi Stephen Mbaegbu from Nigeria.
The agenda for the meeting included reports on the current situation of each of the five administrative units in Africa by its representative, a review of the initiatives of the New Models strategic plan for Africa, the New Horizons II formation programme, an evaluation of the Commission and an input of Cmi on its work and its role.
The initiatives of the New Models Project approved by the provincials are in the fields of communication, youth ministry, formation of leaders, child rights, vocation ministry and initial formation.
The goal of the initiative on communication is to create awareness and facilitate the flow of information and understanding for effective management of the life, mission and sharing of best practices at a Marist regional level. To achieve these, the Commission has assigned two of its members to update the brothers on events happening in the region through newsletters, which will be published biannually.
The initiative on youth ministry aims at making it a top priority, creating an African proposal for its development and reaching out especially to the youths on the margins of our society. The commission is still looking for the possibility of organising a workshop for leaders and coordinators of youth ministry in Africa.
The initiative on the formation of leaders, which started in the New Horizons Programme Phase I, aims at developing Marist leaders who will contribute to the realization of an authentic transformative leadership in a new Africa. There is an approved budget to pilot a project in Malawi as phase II and that will be extended to a wider area in Southern Africa in the future, if the pilot phase is successful. On the other hand, a concept has been presented to have another donor agency run another pilot project in 12 schools in five African countries. The pilot project encompasses leadership formation, child rights and sustainability.
Finally, the initiative on child rights seeks to raise awareness and implement concrete proposals on children’s rights and protection in all Marist works in Africa. This initiative is part of the New Horizons II project and collaborates with FMSI.
Regarding the vocation ministry and initial formation initiative, the Commission will present to the Conference of Superiors of the African Continent (CSAC) a proposal for a specialised team to lead this initiative with the participation of the Brothers Today Secretariat.
The meeting ended with a general comment on the International Gathering of Marist Youth scheduled to take place in Guatemala from Jan. 15 – 20, 2019.