Comboni Missionaries Develop Online Platform to Teach Sign Language, Promote Inclusion in Sudan

Khartoum, 14 October, 2025 / 4:33 PM

Members of the Comboni Missionaries of the Heart of Jesus (MCCJ) in Sudan have developed a new online platform designed to teach Sudanese Arabic sign language with the aim of promoting inclusion, communication, and awareness in the country. 

The initiative, according to the information service of Propaganda Fide, Agenzia Fides, targets teachers, families, and organizations that support deaf and hard-of-hearing communities nationwide.

“The site, managed by the Comboni College of Science and Technology is designed to teach the language through multimedia resources and is aimed at Sudanese Arabic speakers who wish to learn it for personal, professional, or educational reasons,” Agenzia Fides said in an October 13 report.

Fr. Jorge Naranjo, a member of M.C.C.J  who serves as Rector of Comboni College of Khatoum  (CCK) shared that the aim of the project is to make communication easier and more inclusive for people with hearing impairments.

Agenzia Fides says that the site will connect users with accredited translators from the Sudan National Union of the Deaf (SNUD).

This, according to the report, will allow institutions to easily include people with hearing impairments in their activities.

Agenzia Fides said that recording of the video lessons began on September 30, featuring an accredited translator provided by the SNUD.

Founded in 1929, CCK began as a secondary school to continue the mission of St. Daniel Comboni in the North East African Nation. 

Over the years, the college has reportedly grown into a multi-religious and international institution that welcomes both Christian and Muslim students.

In 2001, at the request of parents who wanted their children to have educational continuity based on the principles of the school, the CCK  was opened to create an inclusive society where each individual can aspire to excellence, both spiritual and professional.

“Almost half of the students and most of the teaching staff are of Islamic faith,” Fr. Naranjo said, and added, “Together, we seek to educate our young people to serve according to a model that seeks to integrate their cultural diversity and create social cohesion, particularly with those who live on the outskirts of the country … or refugees of Eritrean or South Sudanese origin.”

Agenzia Fides   highlighted some of the challenges CCK has faced, especially in 2023, at the onset of the Sudanese civil war.

“Although it still stands, the main building became the epicenter of a battlefield. Thus, Khartoum remains in the name, but its activities have taken on a different form with the launch of online learning programs,” reads the Agenzia Fides report.

Sudan has been engulfed in a civil war since April 2023, when a fierce power struggle erupted between the national army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group which is currently commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.