AMECEA: Countries Privileged to Hoist Their Flags During World Youth Day 2023
Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA
As countries across the globe prepare for the World Youth Day in the month of August, with thousands of youths expected to be part of this historical event, some AMECEA countries including Kenya, Malawi and Ethiopia have been offered the opportunity to hoist the flags of their countries together with the flag of Portugal which is the host country and the Vatican flag.
“Among the many countries that will be represented during the World Youth Day in Lisbon, Portugal, we are blessed as a country to hoist the Kenyan flag,” the National Youth Chaplain for the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) Fr. Cosmas Mwova shared in an interview with AMECEA Online adding that it is a recognition for the country.
According to the youth chaplain, Mr. Alloys Mogere Nyakundi will be the Kenyan flag bearer for the Kenyan delegation.
Mr. Nyakundi an alumna of Kenyatta University in Kenya is in charge of the Small Christian Communities (SCC’s) for young people and a facilitator of Online Young Adult Seekers Small Christian Community that creates a safe space for young people from different parts of the world to share their life challenges and support one another.
For Malawi youths who intend to leave the country on Monday, July 24, a week before the commencement of the WYD to interact with youths from the Catholic Diocese in Coimbra, Portugal Ms. Consolata Chome will be the flag bearer.
Ms. Chome is associated with several church affiliations including Catholic Girl Guide Malawi, Catholic Scout, St Patrick’s Youth Group, and St Joseph Small Christian Community Youth Group.
According to Fr. Valeriano Mtseka the National Youth Chaplain in Malawi who will accompany the eleven youths from Malawi together with the Youth Coordinator, the Bishop Vice Chairman for the Pastoral commission, “The Malawi youths will have an exchange program with the youths from Coimbra Diocese so they can learn from each other and strengthen more about faith.”
Fr. Mtseka noted that, prior to leaving the country with the youths, they will share more on housekeeping rules “so as the youths travel, they need to understand the reason for their travel and act accordingly when out of the country.”
“I will also share with them as I normally do on the reality of trafficking since this is rampant and the youths need to be cautious about it since they are the most targeted group,” the youth chaplain narrated during the interview and continued, “I will therefore discourage them from remaining behind when the event is over.”
On her side, the national youth coordinator for Ethiopia Ms. Yemesrach Assefa Bogale will be the flag bearer for the Ethiopian delegation.
The coordinator from the Catholic Bishops Conference of Ethiopia (CBCE) who has served in that capacity for slightly over three years will travel with two different groups to Lisbon: the pilgrims are about 56 and nine volunteers.
She notes that the volunteers who have been undergoing training organized by the World youth day foundation for the past three months, are expected to assist the pilgrims during the week-long event which will run from 1-6 August.
Asked about her expectation especially to the Catholic youths from Ethiopia after the World youth day, Ms. Bogale said, “Going for the international exposure will give the youths opportunity to see the bigger image of the Church and to be able to experience other people’s cultural ways of doing things. I therefore expect this meeting to strengthen their spirituality and faith.
As flag bearers, Mr. Nyakundi, Ms. Chome and Ms. Bogale will join other young people from different parts of the world to do rehearsals in preparation for welcoming the Pope on the last day Sunday, August 6, when the youths will have Mass with the Holy Father.
World Youth Day is an international gathering of Catholic young people from around the world held approximately every two to three years in varying host countries. The celebration began with Pope (Saint) John Paul II in 1984 as an outreach to the youth of the world and an invitation to an encounter with the Pope and other young people.
