Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Abuja (Agenzia Fides)- Cardinal Peter Turkson, Archbishop of Cape Coast, in Ghana, is the first president of the Association of Bishops' Conferences of West Africa, a fusion of the new Association which is an amalgamation of AECAWA and its French speaking counterpart, Conference Regionale de L’Afrique de l’ouest, CERAO (see Fides 4/12/2007).
Cardinal Turkson, former president AECAWA president was appointed head of the new Association during the plenary assembly held on 7 December in Abuja, Nigeria. The 65 English speaking and French speaking bishops that voted also elected Theodore Cardinal Sarr, Archbishop of Dakar, Senegal as Vice President..
“This is a dream come true after seven years of prayers, meetings, documents and drafts of statutes” said Cardinal Turkson in a message issued at the end of the Assembly, a copy of which was received by Fides. “We are encouraged by this realisation of our desire to form one Association of the Bishops of West Africa, the fruits of the first missionaries in our region. We cannot fail to voice our gratitude to all the many mission societies which planted the seeds of evangelisation in our countries” the Cardinal said.
The duties of the Association include: promoting relations between the member Bishops' Conferences; build fraternal and effect relations between the respective secretariats; coordinate studies on issues of common interest and forms of collaboration between Bishops' Conferences and other bodies; act a connecting agency to tackle urgent issues for the Church in West Africa, such as proclamation of the faith, interreligious dialogue, inculturation, justice, development and peace.
Reaffirming their commitment to continue to promote the concept of Church-Family-of-God, the Bishops of West Africa said they intend to take up challenges deriving from “present economic, socio-political and cultural situations in the region”. And for this commitment they established 5 sub-commissions for: seminaries, clergy and religion; justice, peace and development; laity and family life; interreligious dialogue; catechism and social communications. The Bishops placed their new Association under the protection of Immaculate Mary. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 11/12/2007 righe 28 parole 335)
