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Prayers lift up peaceful elections in Zambia

During National Ecumenical Prayers for Peaceful Elections in Zambia, held 1 August, religious and civic leaders gathered in-person and online to pray for peaceful elections in the nation, which has been coping with a rise in violence during the lead-up to 12 August voting.

African Churches mark International Women’s Day

As African churches joined the rest of the world in marking International Women’s Day, pastors, gender experts and activists called for a critical evaluation and strengthening systems to ensure gender justice and equality in churches and society.

COVID and the challenge of holistic humanity

While traveling from the border of South Sudan on a remote dirt road toward the Ugandan town of Kitgum, my companion and I were flagged down by two men. They were carrying their paralyzed friend to Kitgum Hospital and asked if we would give them a lift. Routine as the question may seem, the choice was not an easy one.  The year was 2007, and while the Lord’s Resistance Army had been mainly cleared out, sympathizers remained, and picking up travelers was risky. Pietro, the South Sudan country director who was traveling with me, turned and said, “You’re the logistics officer, what do we do?”

Young Africans are eager to grapple with challenges

Young African clergy, theologians and laypersons are eager to engage with the challenging issues facing their continent and the world. This became clear in a recent essay competition for authors below 35 years by the World Council of Churches (WCC) in partnership with the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC).

Rev. Damon Mkandawire: “A man is a gender justice champion”

This is the fifth in a series of interviews with Thursdays in Black ambassadors who are playing a vital role in increasing the impact of our collective call for a world without rape and violence. Rev. Damon Mkandawire is hospital administrator for the United Church of Zambia’s Mbereshi Mission Hospital.

“Ambassadors of change” address gender justice at Uganda university

As Makerere University in Uganda admitted new undergraduate students in August, trained “ambassadors of change" were able to speak about preventing sexual and gender-based violence and HIV transmission. The ambassadors were trained though workshops offered by the World Council of Churches Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy programme.

Anglican university students address violence, promote HIV testing in village schools

Students at Makerere University in Uganda have launched an evangelical and health mission in Kayunga, one of the rural villages in Mityana district located about 50 km from Kampala, Uganda.
The initiative follows the October 2018 launch of the Thursdays in Black Campaign against sexual and gender-based violence in Uganda by the Anglican community of the College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity at Makerere University.

Religious leaders in Uganda strive to empower adolescents

As they met with the staff from the World Council Churches (WCC) Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy programme, religious leaders in Uganda realized they are well-placed to empower adolescents and young people with knowledge and skills to negotiate issues relating to sexuality.

Ecumenical groups join in UN forum on business and human rights in Geneva

The huge impacts of businesses on the communities in which they operate often bring benefits, but companies can disregard and even harm people’s rights in pursuit of economic gain. The WCC, ACT Alliance and the Lutheran World Federation hosted a side event at the 6th United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights in Geneva on 28 November, in this context.

In Zambia, foreign investors complicate “economy of life”

To witness and attempt to understand contrasting narratives of foreign investment-linked development and socio-economic injustice, participants of the Ecumenical School on Governance, Economics and Management for an Economy of Life (GEM School) visited a mining company on 22 August.

GEM School: integrating theology and economics

With the aim of building competency in economics within churches, the second Ecumenical School on Governance, Economics and Management for an Economy of Life (GEM School) was held from 21 August - 1 September in Lusaka, Zambia.

Ecumenical guests bring "prayerful support" to Anglican Consultative Council

Leaders and other representatives of Anglican churches throughout the world have gathered from 8 through 19 April for the 16th meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) in Lusaka, Zambia. Participants are celebrating good news of faithful ministries within the communion, while exploring tensions among its provinces, especially over issues of sexual ethics on which Christians disagree.

Methodist Church in Kenya consecrates second woman bishop

A WCC member church in Kenya has consecrated its second woman bishop, Rev. Alice Muthoni Mutuma, on 31 January in Meru. Rev. Pauline Wanjiru Njiru, East Africa regional coordinator for the WCC Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy, attended the service and brought greetings from WCC.