Women in Latin America, Africa focus of Catholic Women’s Organizations conference

By Benedict Mayaki SJ

The WUCWO event will provide the opportunity for the Organization to present the World Women’s Observatory and its work in Latin America and Africa, as well as its first report on the “Impact of Covid-19 on Women in Latin America and the Carribean.”

Speakers at the occasion include Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops and President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, Archbishop Miguel Cabrejos Vidarte, OFM, President of the Episcopal Conference of Latin America (CELAM), Sr. Alessandra Smerilli, Secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and delegate for the Vatican Covid-19 Commission, and Prof. Emilce Cuda, Secretary of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.

The conference is organized by WUCWO, in collaboration with the Episcopal Conference of Latin America (CELAM), under the patronage of the Embassies to the Holy See of Argentina, Australia, Austria, Colombia, Haiti, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.

World Women’s Observatory

The World Women’s Observatory (WWO) is aimed at giving visibility to women, particularly the most vulnerable “who seem to be invisible both for their suffering and their potential,” reads a statement announcing the conference.

In this way, the WWO will “inspire and generate pastoral strategies, synergies between NGOs, renew public policies and contribute to the international agenda” in order to promote integral human development of women, their families, communities and peoples.

The President General, María Lía Zervino explains that they started by listening to the women in Latin America and are now starting to work in Africa.

“It opens up the possibility of gathering the suffering and resilience of so many women who seem to be invisible to the rest of the world,” she said.