AMECEA: AMECEA Enhances a Culture of Safeguarding in Catechetical Training Centers
Delegates who attended the three day’s sensitization and consultation forum on safeguarding at the Catholic Secretariat, Lilongwe, Malawi.
By Virginia Kabugu
The AMECEA Safeguarding Office has intensified efforts to foster a culture of safeguarding and protection within the Church through the Making African Church Safe (MACS) Program. Directors of Catechetical Training Centers and catechists across AMECEA countries participated in a three-day sensitization and consultation forum focused on pastoral approaches to safeguarding and protection.
Organized by the AMECEA Safeguarding Office, the forum is took place at the Catholic Secretariat in Lilongwe, Malawi, from August 25 to 28, 2025. A total of 14 delegates attended.
Speaking on behalf of the Secretary General of Malawi Conference of Catholic Bishops (MCCB), Fr. Joseph Moloka Sikwese, the National Pastoral Coordinator (MCCB), described the forum as an insightful opportunity for reflection, learning, and sharing experiences to integrate safeguarding practices into catechetical training and pastoral structures. He urged delegates to strengthen regional collaboration, drawing on each other’s wisdom and commitment. Fr. Sikwese emphasized that safeguarding is not merely an administrative task but a gospel imperative. “As leaders entrusted with catechesis and formation, our responsibility is to ensure the Church remains a safe, nurturing, and life-giving space for all, especially the most vulnerable,” he said.
Fr. Florence Rutaihwa Rwehumbiza, the AMECEA Pastoral Coordinator, noted that the forum was designed to identify gaps and recommend actions to enhance the capacity of catechists in safeguarding minors. “We aim to engage in meaningful discussions about the pressing challenges threatening children’s safety and sustainability of response actions,” he said.
Similarly, George Thuku, the AMECEA Safeguarding Advisor, highlighted that the sessions focused on building delegates’ capacity to prevent and respond to abuse through comprehensive catechetical formation that mainstreams safeguarding at all levels. “Our goal is to ensure that every catechist graduating from training programs has a foundational commitment to and knowledge of safeguarding,” Fr. Rutaihwa added. He further emphasized, “When we protect a child, we safeguard the foundation of our communities, nations, and shared future. When a child thrives, families thrive, and when families thrive, communities and nations prosper.”
He reminded catechists of their privileged role in transmitting the Catholic faith, an incorruptible treasure, to countless young people.
Since 2019, AMECEA has been implementing the Safeguarding Initiative to make the Church a safe space for all and a critical responder to those affected by abuse. Established in the same year, the AMECEA Safeguarding Office provides technical expertise to senior Church leadership through research, learning, and coordination, enabling informed decisions, policies, and strategic leadership to foster a safeguarding culture. Beyond training directors of Catechetical Centers, the office collaborates with national and diocesan seminaries and national safeguarding offices to prioritize mainstreaming safeguarding in various Church pastoral and development programs.
The three-year initiative targets three key result areas, namely: national conferences, establishing and strengthening safeguarding mechanisms, seminaries and houses of formation, mainstream safeguarding training and practice, and evidence-influenced learning and adaptations of safeguarding programmes in the AMECEA region. The project works with bishops, members of the clergy with national-level responsibilities, national safeguarding officers, rectors of major seminaries, and seminarians.
