Latest News
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South African Oblate Priest Reflects on the Legacy of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela
On April 2, 2018, Easter Monday, South Africa received the sad news that Ms. Winnie Madikizela-Mandela passed away. A ten-day mourning period was declared by the government and her burial was on April 14. I attended one of the many memorial services held in her honor in Orlando stadium in Soweto on April 11. (Among…
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From Impatience to Anger in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The political crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to worsen. The constant expansion of ungoverned space has resulted in widespread violence carried out with impunity, notably in the provinces of Tanganyika, Ituri, Kasai, North Kivu, and South Kivu. Events include targeted and random killings as well as mass killing in the…
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Welcome to our Fall 2018 Intern, Amie Culver
Amie graduated in December 2018, with a Bachelor’s Degree in International Relations at Oral Roberts University. Her interest in civic involvement has developed from a young age. For many years she had volunteered through programs like Feed The City, and interned under social workers for Boys and Girls Club/Salvation Army mentoring and working with distressed…
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AFJN Board Member Fr. Luigi Zanotto 1940-2018
Fr Luigi Zanotto, a Comboni Missionary, died in late March. Fr. Luigi was a zealous missionary who brought to his passion for justice and right relationships to both his pastoral ministry at St. Lucy’s Parish in Newark New Jersey as well as at the UN as the representative of Africa Faith & Justice Network (AFJN)…
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Is President Magufuli of Tanzania becoming autocratic?
Dr. John Pombe Magufuli became president of the republic of Tanzania on November 5th, 2015 after securing 58 percent of votes. Since he took the office of the president, many agree that he kept his promise of fighting poverty, corruption and healthcare problems facing the nation. He fired incompetent civil servants and used funds to…
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Now is the time: The battle against land grabbing carried to the arena of Catholic Bishops Conference of the Republic of Central Africa
Sr Elianna Baldi is a Comboni Missionary and the Coordinator of the AEFJN antenna in the Republic of Central Africa. She participated in the land grabbing conference in Côte d’Ivoire in November 2017 (Photo above). At the end of the conference, she took the battle against land grabbing to the Central African Episcopal Conference. She…
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Meet a Shining African woman entrepreneur
Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu was born and raised in Addis Ababa Ethiopia. After graduating from college in 2005, Betelhem founded “SoleRebels”, a footwear Company. After five years of its establishment, the company became the fastest growing African footwear brand. It is also the first and only World Fair Trade Federation certified company and the first global…
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Annual Report: 2017 Activity Highlights & Updates
Dear Friends, Your outstanding support for the Africa Faith & Justice Network propelled us to new frontiers in Africa and in the United States. Our advocacy in Washington, education programs and outreach through the media grew stronger. Many young Americans participated in our internship program and were exposed to US-Africa policy issues and corporate intrusions…
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Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson trip to Africa
Ahead of his trip to Ethiopia, Djibouti, Kenya, Chad and Nigeria, Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson finally unveiled the long overdue “U.S.-Africa Relations: A New Framework” Below are some highlights from his speech today at George Mason University Fairfax, Virginia Conditions for a Stable and Prosperous Africa “The future of stability is dependent on…
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Is Zimbabwe During and After President Mugabe the same?
On February 28, 2018 the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations held a hearing on “Zimbabwe after Mugabe”. Chipo Dendere, Ph.D., Visiting Assistant Professor Amherst College was one of the witnesses. Here is an excerpt of her testimony: Challenges and opportunities in a post-Mugabe society In my…
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Ethiopian Prime Minster Hailemariam Dessalegn resignation as a prime minster and Chairman of the ruling coalition
On January15, 2018, the Ethiopian Prime Minster Hailemariam Dessalgn announced that he submitted his resignation as Prime Minster and Chairman of the ruling party. His resignation comes right after the release of well known journalists and political prisoners on February 14, 2018, as a result of violent demonstration in different parts of the country demanding…
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Message of the Catholic Bishops of South Sudan on the Occasion of the Holy Father’s Global Day of Prayer and Fasting for Peace in South Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and the World
23rd February 2018 “LET YOUR HEARTS BE TRANSFORMED” (Joel 2:13) (Downlad PDF) We, the Catholic Bishops of South Sudan, meeting in Juba from 21st to 23rd February 2018, express our gratitude to the Holy Father Pope Francis for calling the whole world to pray and fast for peace in South Sudan, DRC and other…
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Brief Profile of the Civil War in South Sudan
After independence from Britain on January 1, 1956, the southern Sudan region mostly black remained united with the North of the Sudan which is Arab and Muslim. The religious presence was mixed with two large majorities, Animist and Christian and a minority 7-8% of Muslims –The gradual imposition of the Sharia law by the North…
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Pope Francis call for prayer and fasting for South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo
On Friday, February 23, 2018 Pope Francis called on people of faith and good will to observe a day of prayer in solidarity with the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and South Sudan. The Pope’s concern is the endless suffering which stems from one similar problem: bad governance and exploitation of…
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AFJN joins with women religious in Nigeria for Day of Prayer and Fasting
On Feb 18th, 2018 the Crux published an article “Women religious in Nigeria hold National Day of Prayer and Fasting”.
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Meet Ghana’s first female pilot, engineer and trainer
Patrecia Mawuli is raised in the rural village of Ghana where there is no electricity and water was fetched from sand pipes. One day, she saw a plane flying over the sky while she was cutting a tree in her village. At that point she become curious about where the planes are coming from and…
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Nigerian Catholic Nuns held a Nationwide Day of Prayer on Ash Wednesday
[columns] [span4] We are thankful to CHANNELS TV for covering the event. To watch the video read the instructions or just click on “Watch on YouTube” Ash Wednesday, February 14, 2018, from 10 am to 12 noon, Catholic Women Religious in Nigeria held a nationwide day of prayer and fasting to uphold the sacredness of…
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Of Course We Can, Absolutely
Ash Wednesday, February 14, 2018, from 10am to 12 noon, women religious in Nigeria will hold a national day of prayer and fasting across the country to uphold the sacredness of life. This event will take place in the public square nationwide.The sisters invite Nigerians and all people of good will to join them to…
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Seychelles Named Most Improved Country for Climate and Energy Strategies
The 2018 Environmental Performance Index (EPI) just ranked the small African nation of Seychelles as the most improved country over the past decade in terms of its climate and energy strategies. This can be attributed to their reduction in greenhouse gas emissions which come from the transition to renewable sources of power as well as…
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Slave auction in Libya is ongoing
On the Calendar of the liturgy of the Catholic Church we remember and celebrates today February 8th Josephine Bakhita, a former slave who as a child was sold by her kidnappers to Arab slave traders. Josephine Bakhita was born in the village of Olgossa in the Darfur region of Sudan. As a slave she was sold many times including to the Italian Vice Consul, Callisto Legani in 1883 who later brought her to Italy. Like the migrants from Sub-Sahara Africa her journey to Italy took her through the Red Sea, and the Mediterranean.
