PLENARY TANZANIA: Guests Jet in for the 20th AMECEA Plenary
Pascal Mwanache, TEC
The Secretary General of the Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC) Rev. Fr Charles Kitima said that Tanzania through TEC has begun receiving members of the 20th Plenary Assembly of the Association of Member Episcopal Conferences in Eastern Africa (AMECEA) saying that Tanzanians are happy to host the plenary which is expected to be held in the country from July 10 to 17 this year.
Arrival of guests reached a climax soon after noon on July 9, 2022, with Cardinal Prefect for the Propagation of Faith His Eminence Luis Tagle and the Apotolic Nuncio for Kenya and South Sudan Most Rev. Hubertus van Megen alongside Cardinal Berhanayesus Souraphiel the Archbishop Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, were received at Julius Nyerere International Stadium.
He said this in a press conference where he stressed that the Holy Mass for the inauguration of the plenary will be held at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium, Dar es Salaam on 10th July.
“On the 10th July there will be the inauguration of the 20th plenary of Catholic bishops in all countries of AMECEA region with a total of more than 130 dioceses. Delegates from all over the member countries have already begun to arrive and all are thrilled,” said Fr Kitima. He further explained that the opening Mass of the Conference will begin at 9:30 am.
“The bishops will meet in this session here in Tanzania for a three-day study session on how to implement the Holy Father’s Encyclical ‘Laudato Si’ followed by another three-day business session for other issues of regional pastoral interest. This goes hand in hand with the Paris Agreement of December 2015 on how to care for and protect the environment,” he added.
On his side, AMECEA Secretary General Rev. Fr Antony Makunde said that monitoring of the resolutions of AMECEA meetings is coordinated by the AMECEA Secretariat located in Nairobi, where they have various departments that coordinate decision-making at plenary meetings such as this one in Tanzania.
“Within AMECEA Secretariat we have the department responsible for sustainable human development and this is also looking at the issues of the environment. Therefore, the decisions that will be made at this plenary meeting, as well as the strategies that will be put in place, will be developed into a work plan in which the member states will redesign the action plan to match their country’s decision-making process,” he said.
He added that every year there will be an evaluation of implementation and that fortunately plenary meetings are held every four years where information is sent to the meetings where shortcomings will be addressed, successes will also be given priority, challenges will be addressed and new strategies developed.
