REMARKS BY
THE REVEREND CANON PETER KARANJA
GENERAL SECRETARY
DURING THE
LAUNCH OF ACT ALLIANCE REGIONAL OFFICE (AFRICA)
ON
12TH NOVEMBER 2015
AT
AACC GUEST HOUSE, NAIROBI
- A. PRELIMINARIES:
Rev John McCullaugh, President and CEO, Church World Services and Global Climate Change Ambassador; Faith Leaders Present; All Protocols Observed; Brothers and Sisters.
- B. INTRODUCTION:
Receive warm Christian greetings from the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK). I am greatly honoured to join you today during this important occasion, not just in the history of ACT Alliance and her affiliates, but also all other institutions that believe in Christ.
May I commend ACT Alliance for her zeal and commitment to serve and impact the lives of millions of people across the globe. Indeed today’s launch of the Regional Office in Africa, is a clear testimony of your unwavering and steadfast spirit of seeking to journey together with like-minded institutions with a view of improving the lives of communities especially the more vulnerable ones in society. In this regard, allow me to congratulate my brother Gezahegn Kebede, for having been appointed to head this office. In the same breathe, I wish to recognize all those who have partnered and made this day possible.
- C. COLLABORATION OF NCCK/ACT ALLIANCE
Brothers and Sisters.
The National Council of Churches of Kenya is a full member of the ACT Alliance and an active member of the ACT Alliance Kenya Forum (AKF). I am happy to inform you that the two institutions have enjoyed a long standing relationship that has been mutually beneficial, enabling us to accomplish a number of projects that have a direct impact on our society. Notable areas of collaboration between NCCK and ACT General Secretariat include:
Emergency Response
Response to the 2011 Drought- With the help of ACT Alliance, the Council was able to provide food aid, carry out trainings in crop husbandry, distributed seeds and other farm inputs and did restocking of goats in Garissa.
Response to South Sudan Crisis in Refugee Services – Some of the supported activities include construction of 95 durable shelter units, fabricated 80 visibility tags for the construction shelter and fabricated 23 camp addressing boards.
Interventions initial Rapid Assessment of the Mpeketoni/Lamu Attacks in 2014 as supported by DKH.
El Nino 2015- The Council is currently working with other AKF members to map out priority areas and mechanisms of intervention.
Advocacy
Significant advocacy work has been made possible through our partnership with ACT Alliance and other stakeholders.
Some of the initiatives include:
- ACT Now for Climate Justice Campaign – The Council is supporting the campaign by mobilizing Kenyans to sign petitions as enumerated in my earlier speech to this meeting. Most likely, NCCK might have more petitions signed than most other actors.
- Extractives in Kenya- In partnership with Diakonia, NCCK is promoting transparency and advocating for accountability to communities living in mining areas, by government and mining companies. All this is in addition to regular advocacy agenda that are adopted by the forum such as the one on shrinking space for CSOs in Kenya (Public Benefits Organizations Legislations).
I find it important to highlight these areas, to underscore the significance of pulling together as Churches to address issues that have historically hampered the development of our people and the region as a whole and which will not go away on their own without intervention.
- D. ACT ALLIANCE REGIONAL OFFICE (AFRICA)
Hon. Guests, All Protocols Observed.
In Galatians 6:2- we are reminded to carry each other’s burdens, in order to fulfill the law of Christ, as a way of advancing humanity and obedience in line with the Scripture. However in reflection, the global family of Churches seems not to have paid much attention to the future and fundamental role of the Church in Africa. This analysis is informed by the fact that despite our various interventions, Africa and indeed her people, are still plagued with a myriad of problems ranging from socio-economic to political issues.
A day hardly passes without the media reminding us of our desperate situation with stories either highlighting the plight of a number of families that have been affected by hunger, children who have been left destitute or millions of people who have been forced to flee their countries due to political turmoil.
Brothers and Sisters, given that this is the world we live in today, it is my conviction that the ACT Alliance Regional Office for Africa, will be quite strategic and instrumental in addressing these issues that afflict our continent. To this end, I wish to call upon all of us to draw on, the possible synergies and remedy our region from such perennial ills including religious intolerance, political instability, corruption and abuse of office and privilege, that constantly put our region on the world map in a negative way. Through this office, I therefore look forward to renewed hope among the membership of Act Alliance as we engage in a genuine conversation through which we will be able to address and resolve the socio-political and economic challenges.
I remind you that it is only through proactive measures that we can enable our society to free itself from the shackles of bad governance, endemic poverty, corruption among others. I urge the church to rise up and occupy its rightful space as we address issues relating to spiritual nourishment, economic empowerment and other overarching issues. On my behalf and that of the NCCK fraternity, we look forward to a more engaging cordial and robust partnership with ACT Alliance through this new office. Towards this end, we will support this new arm of ACT Alliance and help Gezahegn put a foot print in Kenya and indeed the wider African continent.
- E. CONCLUSION
Brothers and Sisters.
The African narrative is punctuated with episodes of a desperate continent with some countries bordering on the brink of the precipice. Whereas this may not be necessarily true, I believe the Church has a responsibility of re-writing this narrative. Let us always remember that we have a duty to bring God’s presence in the situations we find ourselves in.
- F. UNVEILLING OF ACT ALLIANCE REGIONAL OFFICE (AFRICA)
As we are all aware, we are told in Psalm 127:1 that “Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labour in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stand guard in vain”. As we unveil this office today, we pray that the LORD will fulfill His words in Scripture and build it and watch over it. We therefore once again congratulate ACT Alliance for establishing her office in Africa and specifically in Kenya. May God guide you and use this office as a vessel to transform His people.
Brothers and Sisters.
This is the moment that we all have been waiting for. I am greatly humbled to welcome you all as we officially unveil the ACT Alliance Regional Office (Africa) here at AACC. We pray and declare God’s blessings and presence during all the works that will be undertaken through this office.
In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
