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SECAM Advocates for Continental Prayer Day to “amplify voices of marginalized” in Africa

Participants at the SECAM seminar on the theme “Conflicts in Africa in the context of the exploitation of natural and mining resources”, from March 8 to 10, 2024, in Accra, Ghana. Credit: SECAM

By ACI Africa Staff

Accra, 12 March, 2024 / 8:40 pm (ACI Africa).

Participants in the seminar that the leadership of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) convened in Ghana’s capital, Accra, have advocated for the creation of a Continental Prayer Day aimed at bringing to the light particular challenges the people of God grapple with in their respective African countries.

In a Press Release following the March 8 -10 convention that brought together some 40 participants drawn from “diverse regions of Africa and beyond”, including Catholic Bishops, Priests, women and men Religious, and Laity, the Secretary General of SECAM says that the Continental Prayer Day would “amplify” the needs of the vulnerable in African societies. 

During the three-day “pivotal seminar” that concluded on March 10, Fr. Rafael Simbine Junior says, “Various situations across the continent were scrutinized, leading to the formulation of actionable proposals aimed at fostering a better future for believers of all denominations, religious communities and the populace at large.”

“Noteworthy among these proposals is the advocacy for the establishment of a continental Day of prayer and solidarity in Africa to spotlight specific issues in individual countries and amplify the voices of the marginalized,” Fr. Simbine says in his two-page Press Release shared with ACI Africa on Tuesday, March 12.

Additionally, the participants in the SECAM seminar also called for “enhanced education on integral ecology, as well as increased involvement of legal and media professionals in monitoring natural resource exploitation and advocacy efforts.

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Organized under the theme, "Conflicts in Africa in the Context of the Exploitation of Natural and Mining Resources", SECAM realized the three-day seminar in partnership with the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development (DPIHD), German Catholic Bishops’ Misereor, the Catholic Relief Services (CRS), Mosaiko Institute for Citizenship, the Centre d’Etudes pour l’Action Sociale (CEPAS), Denis Hurley Peace Institute (DPHI), and the Catholic Peacebuilding Network of Notre Dame University.

In his Press Release dated March 11, the Secretary General of SECAM highlights the input from the Vatican DPIHD, which he describes as “a key partner and participant in this seminar”. 

DPIHD, Fr. Simbine says, “has urged the Church in Africa to bolster its commitment to addressing issues that perpetuate immense suffering, such as conflicts and forced displacements of populations.”

“As emphasized by the President of SECAM, the overarching objective is to ensure that Africa's abundant resources contribute to economic development, benefit the majority of its populace, foster peace, and alleviate poverty,” he says.

Fr. Simbine also highlights the input of the President of the Ghana Catholic Bishops' Conference (GCBC), Bishop  Matthew Kwasi Gyamfi, who, he says, echoed the sentiments of SECAM President in emphasizing the need to examine the situation in Africa “in light of prevailing circumstances”.

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During their deliberations, the participants recalled the Holy Father’s appeal during his visit to DRC last year, when he urged the international community to stop plundering the African country’s resources.

The 40 participants, the SECAM Secretary General has reported, “unanimously echoed the prophetic message” of the Holy Father, who, they recalled, made the “impassioned plea ... ‘Hands off Africa! Stop choking Africa: it is not a mine to be stripped or a terrain to be plundered. May Africa be the protagonist of its own destiny! May Africa, the smile and hope of the world, count for more. May it be spoken of more frequently, and have greater weight and prestige among the nations!’"

ACI Africa Staff

ACI Africa was founded in 2019. We provide free, up-to-the-minute news affecting the Catholic Church in Africa, giving particular emphasis to the words of the Holy Father and happenings of the Holy See, to any person with access to the internet. ACI Africa is proud to offer free access to its news items to Catholic dioceses, parishes, and websites, in order to increase awareness of the activities of the universal Church and to foster a sense of Catholic thought and culture in the life of every Catholic.

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