Africa

• 4 December 2008
  AFRICA/ZIMBABWE - Government declares health emergency on account of cholera, while the loyalty of the military remains in question Harare (Agenzia Fides) – Authorities in Zimbabwe have declared a health emergency on account of the cholera epidemic that has been plaguing the country for several months (see Fides 2/12/2008). Local healthcare centers ...
• 4 December 2008
  AFRICA/DR CONGO - Talks underway for the crisis in eastern Congo, as missionaries organize a solidarity campaign in Rome in support of the Congolese people Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) – It seems that the moment of democracy has come in the dramatic crisis of North Kivu , in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. In Goma, the capital of the province, in which military and para ...
• 3 December 2008
  AFRICA - “The stranger is not to be seen as a threat, but as our brother in Christ,” Bishops of Africa and Europe state at the close of the Liverpool Seminar on Migration Liverpool (Agenzia Fides) – Migration is a global phenomenon that requires a greater pastoral attention on the part of the Church and her pastors, the European and African Bishops said in their final message issued at ...
• 3 December 2008
  AFRICA - Vocations are growing in Africa: Spiritual Directors in Africa's seminaries tell Fides their experiences Rome (Agenzia Fides) - “ We have many vocations, including to the religious life, both masculine and feminine. In relation to the formation of diocesan priests, we have decided to improve resources by creating provinci ...
• 2 December 2008
  AFRICA/DR CONGO - “The international community has the duty to intervene in bringing peace to eastern Congo,” the Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN in Geneva says. Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) - “The international community cannot remain inactive and should speak clearly. It is of utmost importance that the international community restore order and seek the common good.” These were ...
• 2 December 2008
  AFRICA/ZIMBABWE - Fighting between police and military soldiers; cholera, anthrax, and AIDS: the Zimbabwean crisis continues to worsen Harare (Agenzia Fides) – The extremely serious economic, political, and health crisis taking place in Zimbabwe is worsening every day. In response to the government's decision to hold a credit freeze, due to the lack o ...
• 1 December 2008
  AFRICA - “AIDS is still a priority emergency in Africa,” the Jesuits' AIDS Network says Rome (Agenzia Fides) – We should be on alert, as the AIDS epidemic is not only not over, but it remains the leading cause of death in Africa. This is what the African Jesuit AIDS Network (AJAN) says in their Message fo ...
• 1 December 2008
  AFRICA/NIGERIA - “Who are the ones encouraging the violence, through a cynical manipulation of religion?,” Archbishop of Abuja asks Nigerian authorities Abuja (Agenzia Fides) - “Once again, lives and properties have been destroyed, causing great avoidable damage and misery to many families and communities. Of particularly grave concern is the targeting of places of wor ...
• 28 November 2008
  AFRICA/KENYA - “I hope that the two sisters have heard of the news of the Holy Father's concern for them,” the Nuncio in Kenya tells Agenzia Fides Nairobi (Agenzia Fides) - “The Holy Father's expression of his closeness, via Father Lombardi, to the two kidnapped sisters is important for us. I hope that the two sisters, as has occurred in other similar cases in ot ...
• 27 November 2008
  AFRICA/ZIMBABWE - Cholera and politics: a deadly combination Harare (Agenzia Fides) – Cholera has become another issue in the political debate between President Robert Mugabe and the opposition party the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), led by Morgan Tsvangirai. ...
• 27 November 2008
  AFRICA/KENYA - Tuition-free education at risk. Another negative consequence of the rise in food costs, as a result of speculation Nairobi (Agenzia Fides) – Kenya is planning to increase tuition costs in January. The association of high school principals has presented a proposal with the new costs to the Education Minister, asking that if the gove ...
• 26 November 2008
  AFRICA/KENYA - “We condemn the corrupt individuals who have created an artificial food shortage,” the Archbishop of Mombasa declares Mombasa (Agenzia Fides) - “We are shocked to learn that senior government officials and businessmen are responsible...[for] an artificial shortage of maize and maize flour...in the country,” says a statement sent to ...
• 26 November 2008
  AFRICA/CONGO DR - Murdered reporter may have had important information; even if he did not, a threatening sign has been sent out to all those thinking of revealing the truth behind the war in Kivu Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) - “Just before his murder, Didace Namujimbo had handed over a report to the MONUC on the death of his colleague from Radio Okapi, Serge Maheshe, assassinated in Bukavu on June 13, 2007. Perhaps ...
• 25 November 2008
  AFRICA/SWAZILAND - “The recent bombings are thus a manifestation of the failure by the ruling elite to engage in serious and honest dialogue,” says the Bishop of Manzini, condemning the wave of terrorism passing through Swaziland in recent months Mbabane (Agenzia Fides) - “The Constitution was adopted and a significant portion of the Swazi people was left out of the process. We believe that it was due to being marginalized that led some people to adopt crude an ...
• 24 November 2008
  AFRICA/SOUTH AFRICA - Participate in the vote, contribute to democratic debate: the Bishops of South Africa prepare for 2009 elections Johannesburg (Agenzia Fides) - “For Democracy to live, we all need to participate. For Christian voters, this participation is a serious obligation,” this is how the South African Bishops are inviting local Catholics ...