Youth Animators in Kenya Undergo Training to Enhance Participation in Church Activities

^{Fr. Selvam Presiding over Holy Mass. Credit: DBYES/Fr. Selvam}

He says that the biggest challenge with youth meetings in church is that the people attend without an agenda in mind, underscoring the need for a manual that provides the youth with something to look forward to ahead of their meetings.

“In many church groups, the youth attend without an agenda or program and only start crafting one when they are already in the meeting. They then leave the meeting without any idea of how to move forward with the discussions of their meetings,” he said.

The Priest has consolidated a manual dubbed “Scaffoldings Program: Training Youth in Christian Life Skills”, which offers in-depth activities to keep young people engaged during their meetings.

The 20-chapter manual is divided into four sections, each with various themes. Each theme in the book can take up to six hours of training, the SDB Priest says.

More in Africa

“Leaders refuse to smell like their citizens”: Catholic Archbishop in Nigeria Fault Political Leaders for Standing Aloof

Read the article

The training can be spread over two days monthly, Fr. Selvam says, and explains, “If conducted weekly, the trainers will need only three hours every week for 40 weeks to complete the training.”

^{Outdoor activities during DBYES flagship program of Youth Animators. Credit: DBYES/Fr. Selvam}

Published by the Paulines Publications Africa in 2008, the manual is already a success story in Tanzania and Kenya.

In Tanzania, Chuo cha Maisha in the Catholic Archdiocese of Dar es Salaam has been training youth animators using the manual since 2006. The training also runs in Tanzania’s Morogoro Diocese.

In Nairobi Archdiocese, Scaffoldings program is recommended for the age group of 13 to 19, Fr. Selvam says, and adds, “It is noteworthy that this program has also received some attention from non-Catholic churches in Kenya and Tanzania.”

^{Participants in DBYES flagship program of Youth Animators. Credit: DBYES/Fr. Selvam}

The workshop that ran from August 2 to August 6 at DBYES in Karen, Nairobi attracted 38 participants from various Kenyan Parishes, including Religious Sisters, Priests and Lay youth animators.

DBYES hopes to replicate the program at least twice annually, the India-born Priest says, adding that plans are also underway to focus on character building through various training programs among young people in Africa.

Agnes Aineah is a Kenyan journalist with a background in digital and newspaper reporting. She holds a Master of Arts in Digital Journalism from the Aga Khan University, Graduate School of Media and Communications and a Bachelor's Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communications from Kenya's Moi University. Agnes currently serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.