AMECEA: An All-Departments AMECEA Regional Meeting Takes Place In Dar Es Salaam Ahead of the 20th AMECEA Plenary
Cross-section of participants and AMECEA partners
Pascal Mwanache-TEC
A task force from AMECEA region has met in Tanzania to discuss the implementation of various activities in their conferences including the Synodal process and preparations of the AMECEA Plenary Assembly which will take place in the country, from the Sunday 10th to Sunday 17th July 2022.
In his introductory remarks, AMECEA Secretary General, Fr. Anthony Makunde, told the participants that, among other things, the meeting was organized for the members to share the feedback on Conferences’ operational activities, especially those related to the implementation of the resolutions of the 19th AMECEA Summit held in July 2018 Addis Ababa, as well as the process of the Synod of Bishops on Synodality 2021-2023.
“We will look at operational challenges including those within our conferences, but also those that are beyond our control especially the Covid-19 pandemic and the issue of Climate Change … our inputs will later be put forward as recommendations to be discussed at the 20th AMECEA General Assembly,” he said.
He added: “Through this meeting, we, as AMECEA actors, will come up with a joint plan, aimed at facilitating the Synodal journey and implementing Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’ message in the region.” He said.
Fr. Makunde also added that the 20th AMECEA General Assembly will be held in Tanzania, July of this year under the auspices of the Main theme on Environment, and is expected to be attended by between 400 and 500 people, including all bishops in the AMECEA region as well as representation from the World Church.
“In fact, we expect many to participate… The AMECEA region has a total of 122 dioceses, so we expect more than 130 bishops including bishop emeriti… We also expect representatives of various lay groups, youth, women, nuns, universities and other existing institutions within the AMECEA Conferences” he said.
The Meeting held from February 22-25 this year, was organized by AMECEA Secretariat in collaboration with Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC), and it involved the heads of all AMECEA departments; CARITAS Africa; Catholic Care for Children (CCC) officers in Uganda, Kenya, Zambia and Malawi; Child Safeguarding officers in the Conferences that make up AMECEA including Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Zambia, Sudan, Uganda, Malawi and Tanzania; as well as Somali and Djibouti which are observer countries.
The meeting also included representatives from the Jesuit Council for Africa and Madagascar (JCAM) and the African Network for Sustainable Youth.
