VATICAN: Radio Vatican, SIGNIS Africa to Celebrate 70th Anniversary of English Broadcasting in Africa
Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA
The management team of Radio Vatican in collaboration with SIGNIS-Africa have organized a webinar conference to mark the 70th anniversary of Radio Vatican broadcasts in Africa with the intent of reaching out to Catholic communicators on the continent on how they can be instruments to “chart the pathway for a better future” through their way of reporting.
“This is a legacy that needs to be celebrated. As Catholic communicators, we have the duty of not only reporting social events but also of helping society to chart the pathway for a better future,” reads the message sent to AMECEA Online.
According to organizers of the event which is slated for Friday, July 17, the world is currently plagued with anxieties of pandemic and Black Lives Matter protests as was realized in the 1950’s during the colonial period in many countries on the continent when the Radio Vatican began broadcasting in English towards the African continent.
“When we looked around the world we saw anxiety about the Coronavirus, anxiety about racial tensions in the United States that have become a global phenomenon and which we cannot ignore given Africa’s history of colonialism. Then, we see the many challenges of ethnicism, tribalism (and) armed conflicts in Africa,” the head of Radio Vatican’s English and Kiswahili Africa Service, Fr. Paul Samasumo said Thursday, July 9, in an interview in relation to anxieties in the world.
The Zambian-born cleric who is also Vice-President of SIGNIS continued, “In all these, the voice of the Pope reverberates across the world through the Radio Vatican and Vatican News. The voice of the Pope has been heard directly in Africa. There are many Catholic radios in Africa that have partnered with the Radio Vatican and they rebroadcast the daily Radio Vatican programs that the English Africa Service produces.”
He added, “It’s a two-way communication process: On one hand, we bring the voice of the Holy Father, the Pope every day to many Catholic homes; on the other hand, we also highlight what the Church in Africa is doing and saying.”
The webinar conference under the theme “Story- telling as a tool to manage racial and social tribulations in Africa,” has borrowed a leaf from this year’s message of Pope Francis for World Communication Day where he talks of storytelling and sharing of positive stories.
“We use insights from Pope Francis’ 54th message for World Communication Day to stimulate the minds of Catholic Communicators on this important task of building a vibrant continent which, like the phoenix, can ride from the ashes of adversity and discriminations to a future of wellbeing and social inclusiveness,” the message from management team of Radio Vatican reads in part.
Some of the topics for the day will include: master weavers of African stories; promoting everyday heroes as solutions to African challenges; Radio Vatican over the years; the Popes and telling of African story; witness of Nigeria’s women Religious working in challenging environment and; interpreting Black Lives Matter in the South African context.
The management team of Radio Vatican which was established in 1931 and currently broadcasts programs in 47 languages has partnered with SIGNIS-Africa to mark the 70th anniversary of Radio Vatican broadcasts to Africa.
