Africa’s Secretaries General of Episcopal Conferences meet in Zambia

By Mwenya Mukuka –Zambia

SECAM meeting in Livingstone, Zambia

A meeting of Secretaries General under the auspices of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) is currently taking place in Zambia’s tourist town of Livingstone.

Speaking during the inauguration of the gathering, Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (ZCCB) Director for Communication who is also the Bishop of Monze Diocese, Moses Hamungole, called on Secretaries General to ensure that Catholic Secretariats employ competent, professional, well-motivated, and disciplined staff.

Secretaries General must be good stewards

Bishop Hamungole appealed to the Secretaries General to be good stewards of Episcopal Conferences by managing human, material and financial resources well.

“Be the vision and mission bearers of the Church”

Bishop Hamungole further said that Catholic Bishops expect their Secretaries General to be up to date with social, political, economic and religious developments adding that they must read widely and be in a position to offer competent counsel to their conferences.

The ZCCB Bishop Director for Communications challenged Secretaries Generals to be the vision and mission bearers of the Church in the country or region.

During the homily, in the Opening Mass, Bishop Hamungole further challenged the Secretaries General to plan for a vibrant Church.

The SECAM meeting, which is being held in Livingstone from 18 to 23 April 2018, has attracted over 52 delegates.

SECAM, comprising all national and regional episcopal conferences in Africa is a continental organisation of African Bishops that came out of the Second Vatican Council experience. African Bishops resolved, at the time, to create a continental structure whose mission would be to build the African Church as a Family of God.

SECAM’ secretariat is in Accra, Ghana.