wfn.org | All Africa News Agency BULLETIN No. 06/03, February 17, 2003

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

All Africa News Agency BULLETIN No. 06/03, February 17, 2003 (B)

All Africa News Agency
P. O Box, 66878, 00800 Westlands
NAIROBI, Kenya
Tel: 254-2-4442215, 4440224
Fax: 254-2-4445847, 4443241
Email: aanaapta@insightkenya.com , aanaapta@hotmail.com

AANA Bulletin
Acting	Editor -Elly Wamari	

Bulletin APTA
Acting Editor - Silvie Alemba

Southern Sudan Relief Agencies Form Merger

RUMBEK/NAIROBI (AANA) February 17 - Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation 
Association (SRRA) and the Relief Association of South Sudan (RASS) have 
merged.

SRRA and RASS were, before their merger early this month, humanitarian 
wings of Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) and Sudan 
People's Defence Forces (SPDF) respectively.  They will now operate as one 
relief body for the SPLM/A.

Their union is in compliance with recommendations of a workshop held in 
Rumbek between December 18 and 24, last year.

The workshop was organised to facilitate implementation of a Nairobi 
Declaration on Unity and Merger of the SPLM/A and SPDF as earlier agreed by 
their leaders, Dr.John Garang de Mabior and Dr.Riek Machar Teny Dhurgon 
respectively, in Nairobi on October 23, 2002.

The merger of the two relief bodies heralds unity of the people of the New 
Sudan, who are convinced that their needs require a united approach under 
one humanitarian wing of  the SPLM/A.

The New Sudan consists of five regions namely, Bahr-el-Ghazal, Upper Nile, 
Equatoria, Southern Kordofan, Nuba Mountains and the Funj, also known as 
Southern Blue Nile.

The new humanitarian organisation will adopt the name Sudan Relief and 
Rehabilitation Commission (SRRC).

A technical committee comprising the two executive directors of SRRA and 
RASS (Elijah Malok and Mr. Thomas Dut Gatkek respectively), two legal 
officers and one person from the SPLM National Peace and Reconciliation 
Desk, shall prepare a document that will merge the constitutions of the 
organisations.

The new constitution is expected to be ready latest March 31. It will 
outline SRRC's new mandate, vision, mission and purpose, keeping in mind 
the five R's (relief, reparation, rehabilitation reconstruction, and 
resettlement).

Within the first week of April, 2003, the new constitution of SRRC will be 
presented to the leadership of SPLM/A for approval, after which SRRA and 
RASS will be officially dissolved, and the new relief body (SRRC) 
officially commissioned.

Reported by Makur Kot Dhuor

Church Leader Tells Christians To Uphold Micro-Finance

NAIROBI (AANA) February 17 - Although Africa has enormous human and natural 
resources, it is unfortunate that majority of people continue to live in 
poverty.

This is despite various efforts being initiated to address the problem, 
says the General Secretary of the National Council of Churches of Kenya 
(NCCK), Rev Mutava Musyimi.

But, according to Rev. Musyimi, this phenomenon should not discourage us 
because "we have recognised that there is a need for innovative 
arrangement, which can address the problem of the poor in our societies".

The church leader was speaking at the opening a pan-African conference for 
Christians here (February 4) on the theme: Building God's Kingdom Through 
Micro-Enterprise Development.

The conference, which went on to February 7, coincided with the launching 
of an African chapter of the Christian Micro-Enterprise Development 
(ACMED), whose headquarters will be in Nairobi.

The Kenyan churchman stressed that such financial services have primarily 
been regarded by policy-makers and planners as macro-level measures for 
stimulating and promoting economic and welfare development.

In less developed countries in particular, little or no consideration has 
been given to the economic and social disparities that these services might 
create, noted Rev Musyimi.

He stressed the need for Christians to develop and sustain people-centred 
approaches to development.  "With people-centred approach, general 
propositions are ... that poorer people may benefit rather than simply 
those who can convert additional financial resources into re-enumerative 
production," he explained.

He went on: "A broader range of welfare-depriving factors than low-cash 
income may be influenced, and synergies between a wider array of 
inducements may be generated."

He described this as both Christian in orientation and development in its 
approach, stressing, "Christian micro-finance institutions should make this 
difference."

Rev Musyimi further told his audience that a Christian Micro-Finance 
Institution, should address, among other issues, savings, production loans, 
consumption, insurance, interest rates, effects of HIV/AIDS, and social 
mobilisation.

"But while the Church in Africa has played a very major role in addressing 
the above needs, the approaches need to be improved so that the majority of 
our people can benefit", he advised.

He added that micro-finance had proved to be a powerful instrument for 
poverty reduction that enabled the poor to create wealth, increase incomes, 
and reduce their vulnerability to economic stress.

"Our efforts need to be focused into building strong financial institutions 
which meet the needs and challenges of the poor," he said.

Reported By Osman Njuguna

Pope Appoints New Bishops, Creates New African Dioceses

VATICAN CITY (AANA) February 17 - Pope John Paul II has appointed new 
bishops for the Catholic Church in Africa.  He has also created additional 
dioceses.

Sources from the Vatican indicate that the Pope has appointed Rev. George 
Cosmas Zumaire Lungu of Zambia as new bishop for Chipata Diocese, situated 
in the eastern side of the country.

The 42-year-old Bishop was ordained a priest in 1985. He undertook 
theological and philosophical studies both in Zambia and Kenya.

He formerly served his diocese (Chipata) in various capacities, such as 
parish priest, rector of a minor seminary, as well as being the apostolic 
administrator for the diocese.

The Pope has also appointed Rev. Joachim Ntahondereya as new bishop for 
Muyinga Diocese in Burundi.

Until his new appointment, the Catholic clergyman has been a Parish priest 
and professor of moral theology at the major seminary of Gitega.  The 
49-year-old clergyman was ordained a priest in 1980.

At the same time, the Pope has appointed Nigerian Catholic clergyman, Rev 
Fr. Michael Apochi as new bishop for the diocese of Otukpo.

Born in 1960, the newly appointed bishop was ordained into priesthood in 
1986. He has served as rector for both Makurdi and Joss seminaries.

Meanwhile the Pope has created new dioceses of Ache in Nigeria. This has 
been carved off from the larger archdiocese of Benin. The first bishop for 
the newly created diocese is Rev. Gabriel Ghiakhomo Dunia.

The head of the Catholic Church has also created a new diocese in Kenya. It 
is Nyahururu Diocese, curved off from a larger archdiocese of Nyeri in the 
country's Central Province.

He has subsequently appointed Rev Fr. Luigi Paiaro (68 years) of the 
Consolata Missionary Society, as its bishop.

Reported By Osman Njuguna

Habitat Boss Gives Tips On Positive Urbanisation

NAIROBI (AANAAPTA) February 17 - Sustainable urbanisation is one of the 
most pressing challenges facing the global community in the 21st Century, 
according to the Executive Director of United Nations Habitat (UN Habitat), 
Mrs Anna Kajumulo.

Mrs Kajumulo, who was addressing the 22nd Session of the UNEP Governing 
Council held in Nairobi recently (February 3-7), said world cities were 
today  the setting for much national production and consumption, which she 
said, were economic and social processes that generated wealth and 
opportunity.

She said her organisation, together with other UN agencies for cities, was 
aware that local and global environmental conditions were significant for 
sustainable urbanisation.

Mrs. Kajumulo said the mandate given to her organisation by Habitat Agenda, 
the Millennium Development Goals, and the World Summit on Sustainable 
Development (WSSD) to help in poverty alleviation and to provide access to 
water, adequate shelter and other key development mandates, were critically 
dependent upon natural resources.

She said that Habitat was very conscious of the important contributions 
that well-managed cities and towns could make to the reduction of 
greenhouse gases, management of water resources, conservation of forests 
and the preservation of bio-diversity.

The UN Habitat boss said joint programmes, where pooling of complementary 
scientific, normative and operational capabilities were very 
effective.  She said this could be accomplished through integrated 
developmental and environmental policies and decision-making structures 
that promoted effective participation of all stakeholders.

Reported by Joseph K'Amolo

  AACC Appoints New Executive For Women's Desk

NAIROBI (AANA) February 17 - The All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC) 
has appointed a new co-ordinator for Women's Desk.

Mrs. Lillian Mukiri Kamathi, a Bachelor of Commerce degree holder from 
University of Nairobi, will co-ordinate women programmes at the AACC for 
the next one year, starting February.  She is relieving Ms. Battu Beatrice 
Jambawai, the Desk's Programme Executive, who is currently on a one-year 
study leave in the United Kingdom.

Mrs. Kamathi joins the AACC with a wealth of experience from her Methodist 
Church, where she formerly served as manager of one of the church's 
hospital in central Kenya.  "I have served the Church for the last ten 
years", the soft-spoken Kenyan told AANA in an interview last week.

Mrs. Kamathi has described her new assignment as challenging. "Here, things 
are going to be different from what I was used to, but with God's Grace, I 
stand to challenge them," she observed.

With HIV/AIDS falling under her docket, Mrs. Kamathi plans to participate 
fully in a forthcoming HIV/AIDS workshop to be held in Nairobi from May 
5-7.  AACC, alongside the World Council of Churches (WCC), the Caritas 
Internationalis and the UNAIDS, will participate.

Reported by Osman Njuguna