AMECEA: Social Communication Coordinators Calls on Church leaders to Appreciate The Theological Background to Communication Ministries
Photo taken during two day workshop on Social communications strategic plan at Bishops' conference Juba
Ginaba Lino
The Social Communication Coordinator at Association Member of Episcopal Conference in East Africa (AMECEA) has appealed to bishops in Sudan and South Sudan Bishops’ Conference and all conferences in the region to help pastoral agents understand the theological background of communication in the context of evangelization.
Father Andrew Kaufa smm, the Social Communication Coordinator at AMECEA made this appeal during a two-day strategic plan workshop to strengthen Social communication office in Sudan and South Sudan Bishops’ conference.
Father Kaufa said there are still some Church leaders and priests who have not yet taken communication into serious consideration as a way of evangelizing.
“A general feeling of among most national communication coordinators in AMECEA region is that there are still some bishops, priests and catechists who have not yet taken communication into serious consideration as a way of evangelizing.”
It is my appeal again through your office, your Lordship that we help the pastoral activity, but also the leadership to understand even the theological background of communication in the context of evangelization, “Father Kaufa stated.”
He added that there is a need to invest more into communication ministry in terms of infrastructure, space for the communication department and equipment.
He also called on the conference to invest on pastoral agents to do specialization studies in Mass Communication.
“Finally, my appeal is to what has come out during the discussion here about the need to invest more in to the communication ministries. The discussion this afternoon pointed on a number of areas for example, a space for the communication department in terms of infrastructure, offices, but also the need for more pastoral agency to do specialization to studies in mass-communication.”
He called on the Catholic bishops of Sudan and South Sudan Conference to recommend the draft communication strategic plans for implementation to take place in all the dioceses.
“On our part, we feel that the team gathered here has come up with a very brilliant plan which if endorsed and implemented, it will become a game changer in the Conference of Sudan and South Sudan.”
On behave of the bishops’ of Sudan and South Sudan Bishops’ conference, the Auxiliary Bishop of Juba Archdiocese Santo Laku Pio thanked AEMECEA for the great work they are doing to make sure AEMECA region are at the same level.
Bishop Laku Pio said the Sudan and South Sudan Bishops’ Conference is very much concern about the Social communication department because communication is very important for expanding the work evangelization in the Catholic Church.
“The Bishops are very much concern about social communication, off course we have this random communication that is more less and unrefined people say anything anywhere any time for some other reasons, but this collective refined communication which act as a power has been missing.”
The Auxiliary Bishop said Sudan and South Sudan Bishops’ Conference is trying it’s best through Father John Gbemboyo and the members who have come to develop the strategic plan so that the authority of the bishops find position in the society.
He adds that Sudan and South Sudan bishops’ conference is hoping to make sure that the social communication department led the society.
“We will look into this seriously that our social communication lead the society, we are leaders we have to lead the society and if our social communication is weak then the society also becomes weak because they depend on us to seek the truth.”
The Auxiliary Bishop assures the participants that the bishops’ at the conference and ready to recommend the strategic plan to improve on the social communication department in Sudan and South Sudan bishops conference.
Meanwhile, the social communication coordinator at Sudan and South Sudan Bishops’ conference Father John Gbemboyo said the social communication department have taken a journey of what they would like to be as social communication at the conference and diocesan level.
Father John stated that they started the workshop by looking at context analysis, social issues, political issues and also looking at the communication needs.
“We have taken a journey of what we would like to be a social communication department at the conference level and the diocesan level, we started with looking at the context analysis, social issues, political issues which are found in the diocese where they come from, and then we look also at the communication needs.”
He added that they also developed the strategic goals which focus on the establishment of Social communication department at the national level and the diocesan level followed by the resource mobilizations among others.
The social communication coordinator appreciates bishops’ conference of Sudan and South Sudan for trying to bring back the department of social communication to live.
On Monday July 24, 2023, AMECEA Social communication department joint Sudan and South Sudan Bishops’ conference to develop strategic plan that can strengthen the Social communication department of the conference.
The workshop brought about 20 participants from across the Sudan and South Sudan Bishops’ conference.
