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The Lutheran World Federation
Lutheran World Information |
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| 03.04.2003 |
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| Inadequate Education Prevents African Women from Participating in Leadership |
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Women Representatives from African LWF Member Churches Call for Equal Opportunities
NAIROBI, Kenya/GENEVA, 3 April 2003 (LWI) - Women representatives from the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) member churches in Africa, say lack of education and opportunities hinder their overall participation in leadership and decision-making positions in the church.
In a message following the Africa Women's Meeting, held a day prior to the March 23-26 Africa Pre-Assembly Consultation in Nairobi, Kenya, the 50 participants emphasized the need for training and further education for women so that they can be equipped for management positions in church, government and in their communities.
The African PAC brought together around 110 representatives from the 29 LWF member churches in the region, including delegates to the July 2003 LWF Tenth Assembly.
They challenged church leaders to be more intentional in promoting education of the girl child. They also called for more support toward the respective women's desks as a way of ensuring adequate response to practical issues that affect women. Pastors, the women noted, must be equipped to understand gender issues.
While commending LWF member churches in Africa that have ordained women, the representatives urged those churches that are still discussing the issue to invest in theological education and open ordination to women. When women are ordained, they should be assigned to parishes and congregations, the statement from the women’s meeting continued.
Stating their position on violence against women in church and society, the African women requested that the LWF document “Churches Say ‘No’ to Violence against Women,” already launched in some of the churches, be made available in all regions, countries and congregations. They recommended the publication's translation into all major languages within the LWF communion. The women also urged their churches to provide full support in protecting the property rights of women and the rights of widows at the time of their husband’s death, and safeguard their children’s welfare.
With regard to the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa, the women noted that war and conflict, rape, drug abuse, poverty, unemployment, and ethnic differences with all their related consequences have led to a high incidence of HIV/AIDS in Africa. The statement said that HIV/AIDS programs and initiatives should be country-specific, as different countries have different levels of HIV/AIDS awareness and challenges.
The African delegates called on the churches to be actively involved in HIV/AIDS campaigns, and together with governments, support orphans and people living with the disease, and fight for access to anti-retroviral drugs. There was emphasis on the need to involve all levels of church leadership and church members in annual workshops on HIV/AIDS awareness and the issue of stigmatization. Such education should be seen as a holistic response to the LWF global campaign against the HIV/AIDS pandemic, launched in May 2002
Women are becoming poorer through the effects of economic globalization, the participants in the meeting observed. They called on their churches to "be involved in projects and programs concerning women’s empowerment to be able to address the environmental factors that affect women: water distribution, deforestation, forest fires and drought.”
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