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During a visit to Angola held 21-28 January, World Council of Churches (WCC) staff met with local church and community leaders to discuss how preventing obstetric fistula is a matter of human rights.

From 4 to 9 December 2023, thousands of people convened in Harare, Zimbabwe, for the 22nd International Conference on Aids and STIs in Africa (ICASA). Scientists, medical experts, advocates, people living with HIV, and civil society organizations came together under the theme “AIDS IS NOT OVER: Address inequalities; accelerate inclusion and innovation.” Participants from many faith traditions were a meaningful part of many of these representative groups but also took up a space of their own.

An interfaith breakfast held in conjunction with the 78th session of the UN General Assembly brought into focus the urgent need for building partnerships for a one-community response to HIV.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is among the “movers and doers” at the UN Climate Action Summit in New York on 20 September. WCC moderator Bishop Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm commented on the summit, the first-ever of its kind designed to accelerate action by governments, business, finance, local authorities, and civil society.

Representatives of the World Council of Churches (WCC) joined tens of thousands of demonstrators in New York City for the "March to End Fossil Fuels." This powerful protest took place just before the United Nations General Assembly, where world leaders gathered for crucial climate discussions.

As the death toll continued to rise in the wake of wildfires in Maui, Hawaii (USA), the World Council of Churches (WCC) expressed grief and solidarity with the island’s churches and communities.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) joined Caritas Internationalis, ACT Alliance, World Evangelical Alliance, and Lutheran World Federation in signing a joint letter to USAID administrator Samantha Power expressing concern over the suspension of food aid in Ethiopia.

“Tax justice is a matter of faith,” said Suzanne Matale. “By faith, [all] are entitled to abundant life. Ordinary people have a right to know and to participate in decision-making tables that affect our own God-given dignity.”

A global call for prayers and support for the Democratic Republic of Congo has amplified as floods and landslides left hundreds of people dead in South Kivu, a province in the east of the country.

Church leaders in Rwanda are mourning the death of 130 people after massive floods struck several districts in the tiny East African country.

A capacity building seminar held in Nairobi on 17-21 April focused on leadership, diakonia, and development for churches in Africa.

A “Water Justice Manifesto”—signed by 500 organizations including the World Council of Churches—was presented at the UN Water Conference on 23 March, from the General Assembly Plenary hall  podium,  at the high-level segment, by the People’s Water Forum members. 

During the debate on human rights and obstetric fistula at the 52nd session of the UN Human Rights Council, the World Council of Churches (WCC) with its ecumenical partners called upon governments to pay more attention to the prevention of obstetric fistula in their policies, strategic plans, and budgets.

Sanctions should not harm the support for the most vulnerable, says a report on the impact of sanctions on humanitarian work presented at a side-event of 52nd session at the Human Rights Council of the United Nations in Geneva on 10 March.

Visiting Madagascar in partnership with the Catholic Spiritan brotherhood and the non-government organization Geneva for Human Rights last week, the World Council of Churches (WCC) delegation explored how the resources shared better equip churches to help women suffering from obstetric fistula – condition which impacts millions of women around the world, particularly in sub-saharan Africa.

As a crowd of more than 300 gathered, the St Paul’s University School of Theology officially launched Thursdays in Black, pledging to build an Africa without violence and to join together on a pilgrimage of justice, peace, and reconciliation.