AMECEA Appeals for Support for Kenya-based Regional Seminary to “run without hurdles”

Blessed Bakanja is one of the institutions that Catholic Bishops in the nine countries of AMECEA have established. The others are CUEA, and the AMECEA Pastoral Institute Gaba Campus in Eldoret, Kenya.

The nine countries of AMECEA include Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. Catholic Bishops in Sudan and South Sudan are in a single Conference. Djibouti and Somalia are AMECEA affiliate members.

In his October 21 speech, the Chairman of AMECEA underscored the importance of 25-year-old Blessed Bakanja Seminary, noting that it is the institution that gives CUEA its “Catholic identity”.

“Without Bakanja, you can’t talk about the Catholic University of Eastern Africa; you only talk about a University without a Catholic identity. Bakanja, having given CUEA the first cycle of Theology students, gives the university that Catholic identity,” Bishop Kasonde said.

He recalled the storms that the Seminary had endured over the years, and added, “When we saw it falling because of financial constraints, we were very sad. There’s a year when we received only about 17 students and it became difficult for us to run the affairs of the Seminary.” 

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Also speaking during the October 21 event, the Vice Rector of Blessed Bakanja Seminary, Fr. John Njue, said that the celebration was the climax of the Silver Jubilee that had been launched on 17 December 2022.

The Kenyan priests who also chaired the Blessed Bakanja Silver Jubilee Organizing Committee said that the Catholic institution needs over US$86,200.00 to renovate some of its structures.

“We need to renovate the building structure of the Seminary that has worn out with the passing of the years. Cost projected at KES. 13 million. This will make Bakanja a suitable home for the training of our future priests,” Fr. Njue said.

On his part, the pastoral Coordinator of AMECEA, Fr. Emmanuel Chimombo, described Blessed Bakanja Seminary as the association’s “baby”, and called on members of the National Bishops’ Conferences in the region to “patronize” it.

“Our baby Blessed Bakanja Seminary can only exist if we patronize it. May we all send the message to all our member Conferences to send Seminarians to this institution. In so doing, we will live the spirit of our forefathers who established this institution,” Fr. Chimombo said.