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The Catholic Church. A Human and Social Gospel.

There is a Catholic minority in Mauritius, but it is highly valued by both the government and the population for its traditional contribution to social work, in collaboration with the other numerous religious groups present in the country.

Mauritius today has over 1 million,300 thousand inhabitants, mostly Hindus, Buddhists and Confucians (50%); over 32% are Christians of which 25% are Catholics (and 7% Protestants – Anglicans, Presbyterians, Adventists, Baptists and other Pentecostal groups) and Muslims or of other religious faiths. There are over 330,000 Catholics, in 44 parishes in the diocese of Port-Louis and the apostolic vicariate of Rodrigues erected in 2002.In 1985, the Catholic Episcopal Conference of the Indian Ocean was established by the Holy See, which includes the five bishops of the Episcopal Conference of the Indian Ocean (CEDOI): the dioceses of Port Saint Louis and the Apostolic Vicariate of Rodrigues (Mauritius), Saint-Denis-de-La Réunion, Port-Victoria (Seychelles) and the Apostolic Vicariate of the Comoros.

Mons. Jean Michaël Durhône, bishop of Port Louis Diocese

In 1989 and 2019, Mauritius welcomed John Paul II and Pope Francis respectively. The Catholic Church has been present on the islands since the 18th century. In fact, the erection of the apostolic prefecture of the Indian Ocean Islands (now the diocese of Saint-Denis-de-La Réunion) dates back to 1712, which included, in addition to the islands of Réunion, the Seychelles and Mauritius, French colonies, to which Madagascar was added in the second half of the 18th century. The apostolic prefecture was entrusted by the Holy See to the Lazarists, who landed on the archipelago in 1722. Over time, various other missionary congregations, including the Benedictines, Spiritans and Jesuits, joined the Lazarists. The most profound imprint on the development of the Church was left by the Lazarist Jacques Désiré Laval, beatified by John Paul II in 1979 and remembered as the “saint of the island”. He worked there for over 20 years, between 1841 and 1864, dedicating himself above all to the evangelization of the slaves brought from the continent. Those who converted in large numbers formed the first large nucleus of the Mauritian Catholic community, and over the years, in the encounter between black Africans and white European colonizers, they formed the mixed-race majority of Creoles. After independence, in 1968, the government proclaimed religious freedom, and since then, many new Churches, religious groups or syncretistic sects have been created. The notable contribution of the Catholic Church in the fields of education, health and social promotion have always been recognized and appreciated by the various governments that have succeeded one another.

Celebration of Palm Sunday in a parish in Port Louis. File archive.

The visit of Pope Francis – as witnessed by many Catholic faithful – helped to consolidate relations between the different faith communities, between which tensions had arisen at the time of independence. “At that time” – says an elderly person present at the time – “the Catholic Church worked very effectively for reconciliation between the various faiths. And today it continues its commitment as an instrument of unity and collaboration”. Even in Mauritius, however, ecclesial activity has been weakening due to the crisis of priestly and religious vocations in recent years. It should also be emphasized that many Catholics and Christians of other denominations are conditioned by the animist faith. The belief of many in the power of magic or the evil eye influences how faith is practiced, often accompanied by the fear of evil spirits and various superstitions. It should be reiterated, however, that the adherents of the various religions, originally from Africa, Europe and Asia and present in all the islands of the Indian Ocean, have mostly cultivated relationships of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, dialogue and participation in festivities and humanitarian initiatives organized by the adherents of the different religious faiths. (Open Photo: St Louis Cathedral, Port Louis. Shutterstock/Lobachad)

John White

The Nyanjira smile.

Once upon a time, there was a girl of enchanting beauty. Her name was Nyanjira. She had soft, smooth skin and a very sweet smile that was always just a little intriguing.

What particularly caught people’s attention, however, was her lower teeth. Not because they were as white as milk or particularly well aligned, but because no one had ever seen them. And this caused everyone an inordinate desire to see them at least once.

Some swore they had glimpsed them, even if only for a very brief moment. “They are very small and numerous”; “they are all the same and very sharp”; “they are very sharp and so short that they barely peep out from the gums”; “in truth, they are normal, but all the ones in front are missing, that’s why you can’t see them” . . . All lies!

The truth was that no one had ever seen them. Nyanjira was not a frivolous girl. More serious than her age required her to be, she was not fond of playing, joking and laughing. She was always shut up in the hut or in the backyard, intent on the tasks her mother entrusted her with. Was this a fault? Perhaps. The fact is that adults considered her to be the ideal of the perfect girl and the lavish praise they heaped on her only fanned the flames of jealousy in her companions.

One day, they orchestrated a stratagem to get her away from home, at least for a day. They went to her and said: “Together with the village boys, we have organised a walk in the fields and woods. Why don’t you come too?” Nyanjira was about to say no, when her mother intervened: “That sounds like a good idea. Go and have fun.” The girl smiled and said, “One minute and I’ll be ready.”

The group of friends immediately set off. They walked for hours, joking, playing and laughing. Nyanjira was overjoyed. She revealed to a friend: “I had never thought that our place contained so much natural beauty.” It was very hot, but the numerous springs gave everyone new energy and a new desire to continue the trip.

At one point, the sky was covered with black clouds, full of rain. “We’d better hurry home,” the young men said to each other. Instead of following the main path that wound through the fields, they decided to take a shortcut through the forest. When they reached the middle of the forest, a strong wind arose and began to shake the trees.

The trees began to dance as if they wanted to fly: they bent until their branches touched the ground and then, after the gust of wind had passed, they straightened up again, hurling their branches against the sky; immediately afterwards. You could see them whirling with furious rotating movements, and then they bent down again on the side where the wind was pushing them. There was a first bolt of lightning and then another, followed by two deafening claps of thunder. After that, the thunderbolts followed one another at a pace so impetuous that one would think the sky was on fire.

However, the furious thunderstorm did not deter Nyanjira’s friends from the plan they had devised. And so, the boy who had suggested taking the shortcut pretended to stop to pick something up from the ground, waited for the others to pass him, and then turned into a hyena.
Then, with four leaps, he caught up with them and overtook them, without being seen.

A few moments later, the young people arrived at a stream. Acting as a bridge was a tree trunk placed across the stream. It was the last obstacle to overcome before reaching the village. But in front of the trunk, almost as if to block the passage, was the hyena.
The animal says: “The boys can pass. The girls, however, must first, in turn, sing the song Lak Nyanjira”.

Now the wind is stronger than before. The lightning and thunder have grown closer. The raindrops have already begun to fall. There is no time to lose. The boys pass in a single file. When they reach the other bank, they turn and encourage the girls to follow them.

The first girl appears and sings the agreed chant: “Lak Nyanjira, nyarma mayande tindo. Tinde nitindo.Rading madichol. Chee, chee. Lang Audi kadho, Yee, Yee. Onjero Kaundi, Jengo undi, undi.” (“The teeth of Nyanjira, my mother’s daughter, are small and beautiful. You, pretty brunette, have thin cheeks. Chee, Chee. Aundi’s group passes. Yee, Yee, Onjero, Aundi’s son, passes by”).

The hyena smiles, steps aside and lets the girl pass. “Next, the second,” says the animal. The second one also passes the test, and so do the third, the fourth … and all the others. Now only Nyanjira is left. With her traditional calmness, she approaches the hyena and says to her: “You will never get me to sing. Move aside and let me pass”.

Her friends on the other side shout at her, “What’s the matter with you? Sing and pass”. She, however, remains impassive. The rain falling on her face makes her even more beautiful.
And when a flash of lightning shines, the light seems to focus on her. “Sing, Nyanjira, sing!” her friends insist.

Determined to make her open her mouth, the hyena begins to feign menace. Howling in a deep voice, it approaches her and shows her sharp teeth, but the girl remains undaunted.
Then the animal displays a trembling fury: “If you don’t sing, I’ll bite you and ruin that pretty face of yours”.

So, saying, he opens her mouth wide and pretends he wants to bite Nyanjira’s leg. Then he lifts a leg and makes as if to claw it. But he holds back: he does not want to ruin Nyanjira’s skin; he would never forgive himself. The paw, however, has already started to descend on Nyanjira. The hyena tries to retract its sharp claws as much as possible, but the limb comes down on the girl, tearing the cloth that surrounds her.

The sight of the girl’s naked body seems to humanise the animal’s eyes for an instant. From the mouths of the friends on the other shore comes a very clear: “Ooohh!”.“Adorable stubborn one”, thinks the hyena, “you are as stubborn as you are beautiful. But if you think you’ve won,
you’re wrong”.

He takes three steps back, points his front paws at the ground, bends his hind legs and then leaps at Nyanjira. The girl’s quick movement is useless, and the two end up in the mud. The hyena is on top of the girl. His snout is close to Nyanjira’s face. It almost touches it. The four eyes stare at each other. In those of the girl there is terror; in those of the animal, a sense of enchantment. Which the girl notices, amazed. “All right, all right I’ll sing,” says Nyanjira.

The girl gets up. She picks up the cloth from the ground and wraps it around her body. Then, staring skyward, she lets out a deep sigh and opens her mouth.  “Lak Nyanjira nyarma mayande tindo. Tinde nitindo. Radingo madichol. Chee, Chee.”

Her song is infinitely more melodious than that of the countryside. More modulated and caressing than that of a swallow. Even the wind calms down. The lightning continues, but no longer followed by thunder.

The forest resounds with the song of Nyanjira. “Lang Aundi kadho, Yee, Yee…” Caught up in the singing, Nyanjira seems to relax. On her face, the smile returns, and no longer only hinted at, but broad, open. The lips, the beautiful lips, open and the teeth appear in all their splendour.

The hyena, the girls and boys burst into shouts of jubilation. Someone shouts, “I have seen Nyanjila’s teeth!” And the others: “Me too, me too”. There is no longer jealousy in the girls’ hearts. There is real joy which reaches even Nyanjira who finally laughs. She laughs and sings. She sings and laughs. And discovers that it does her good, and makes her feel better. “Onjem Kaundi, Jengo undi undid.”

Having finished singing, Nyanjira lowers her eyes towards the hyena. She no longer sees the animal, however, but the boy she knew very well. She then bursts into laughter and lets him embrace her. Suddenly, the lightning ceases, the thunder dies down, the wind calms down, the trees quieten down, the rain stops falling, the sky becomes clear again and the sun begins to shine again.

Nyanjira crosses the stream, followed by the boy, and the group of friends set off towards the village. Everyone is singing. Everyone is happy. They have finally seen Nyanjira’s teeth. And Nyanjira laughs and laughs and laughs…. (Illustration 123rf)

Folktale from Luo people, Kenya.

Economy. Adaptability and Innovation.

From dependence on sugar cane to diversification into tourism, financial services and innovation, Mauritius looks like a parable with few equals in Africa. But between threats from the climate crisis and transparency issues, there are plenty of question marks.

Over the past few decades, Mauritius has gone from being an economy based on the monoculture of sugar cane to a diversified economy centred on services. The path between these two extremes has been punctuated by strategic policies, long-term development and critical issues that have tested the adaptability of the islands. The archipelago, at present, is at a crossroads: opportunities for sustainable growth collide with a series of urgent challenges that require decisive action, starting with those related to transparency.

From Sugar to Finance
At independence in 1968, Mauritius’ economy was agriculturally driven: sugar was the country’s leading export, contributing 90% of exports and 25% of GDP. Faced with limited resources and a growing population, the government prioritized diversification. The establishment of an export industrial zone in the 1970s facilitated the development of the textile industry and created new employment opportunities. By 1985, the sector accounted for 60% of exports.

The waterfront is the main shopping district of the capital city. 123rf

In the 1980s, tourism emerged as one of the pillars of the local economy, contributing 15% of GDP by the 1990s. The islands have successfully marketed themselves as a luxury destination.
The economic evolution of the islands has gone through two other key moments: in the 1990s, Port Louis launched itself on the financial services market, laying the foundations for the Mauritius International Financial Centre, the financial hub of the islands.
Advantageous tax agreements, sometimes considered controversial, have also played a role in the growth of the sector: this is the case of India; the 1983 Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement with the Asian country (a bilateral convention against double taxation which, in short, prevents income and capital that pass between two countries from being taxed twice) facilitated 37% of Delhi’s foreign direct investments
between 1994 and 2017.

Industrial landscape in import export and business logistics at Port Louis. 123rf

Finally, with the new millennium, Port Louis has embraced the information economy, focusing on informatics and communication infrastructures with the launch of the Digital Mauritius 2030 Vision program.The goal of the initiative is to make the islands a regional hub of innovation. The path just described has nevertheless borne fruit: to date, extreme poverty is virtually absent in Mauritius. The country also has the second or third highest per capita income on the continent, depending on the source.

Opaque obstacles
While there are successes, Mauritius faces challenges that threaten the economic progress achieved so far. The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the fragility of an economy heavily dependent on tourism. In 2020, the islands’ GDP contracted by 15%. Although the country has recovered, resilience and sustainable growth remain priorities. The financial services sector, once the cornerstone of the Mauritian miracle, has been the subject of particular scrutiny. Its inclusion in the so-called grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in 2022 for anti-money laundering deficiencies has highlighted the low reliability of global business networks.

People crossing the street in the centre of Port Louis. The country also has the second or third highest per capita income on the continent Shutterstock/The Visual Explorer

Between 2012 and 2021, the sector averaged almost 6% of GDP. Governance issues have made the challenges even more complex. As shown by an audit conducted by the current government, the previous government of former Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth appears to have manipulated upwards the GDP growth figures during his administration (2019-2024). For example, in 2023 the growth figure was reduced from 7 to 5.6%. The growth of the construction sector was overestimated by 12%. These revelations have eroded public trust in institutions and made the need for transparency more urgent.
In fact only 100 days after the elections Mauritius’ former Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth was arrested on Saturday, 15 February and released on bail two days on money laundering charges.
He was detained along with three others after the anti-corruption agency said it had seized suitcases of cash and luxury watches in raids on 10 locations, including Jugnauth’s home. But few Mauritians expected the Financial Crimes Commission (FCC) to move so quickly, or to arrest the former prime minister on such serious charges.

The intentions of the new government
Among the priorities of the new government, which was sworn in last November, are transparency and good governance. It seems to be a good starting point to reset the economy. It starts by strengthening economic governance. In this sense, independent audit bodies should examine public accounts to ensure correct reporting. Collaboration between the Central Bank and the Institute of Statistics is crucial in this area. Then there is the imposition of greater fiscal discipline; new impetus to exports and trade, also focusing on emerging markets and regional trade agreements to mitigate the trade deficit which in 2022 reached 32.7% of GDP. The government then aims to develop the renewable energy sector, to reach a target of 60% by 2030, and to promote digitalization. The digital sector already produces 8% of GDP, employing over 24 thousand people. The last point is to invest in human capital, also by encouraging the return of the qualified diaspora and at the same time blocking the so-called brain drain abroad.

Aerial view. Resort in Mauritius. Tourism and environmental sustainability will play an important role in the future of the Island. 123rf

Tourism, along a pathway of environmental sustainability will play a role. The goal on the horizon is to attract knowing travellers, preserving the natural heritage and increasing its appeal. Before the pandemic, tourism represented almost 20% of GDP with around 100 thousand jobs created. To ensure the future of its economy, Mauritius must put sustainable and inclusive growth first and then transparency. The path must continue to be that of diversification while the fight against the climate crisis will be carried forward by involving everyone: public and private, perhaps in partnership, and local communities. In conclusion, Mauritius seems to be a success story: an economy that has freed itself from its agricultural origins by showing adaptability and capacity for innovation. The future, however, will require further efforts. The climate and governance crises cannot become insurmountable obstacles for a country that wants to be (and ultimately is) a model for the economies of small island states. (Open Photo.  A Financial Building in the City Centre. 123rf)

Rehana Kasenally

China’s Strategy for Port Development in Africa.

Chinese firms are present in over a third of all African port developments, some of which could be used for expanded Chinese naval presence on the continent.

Chinese state-owned firms are active stakeholders in an estimated 78 ports across 32 African countries as builders, financiers, or operators. Chinese port developments are concentrated in West Africa,
with 35 compared to 17 in East Africa, 15 in Southern Africa,
and 11 in North Africa.

With a total of 231 commercial ports in Africa, Chinese firms are present in over a third of Africa’s maritime trade hubs. This is a significantly greater presence than anywhere else in the world. By comparison, Latin America and the Caribbean host 10 Chinese-built or operated ports, while Asian countries host 24.

In some sites, Chinese firms dominate the entire port development enterprise from finance to construction, operations, and share ownership. Large conglomerates like China Communications Construction Corporation (CCCC) will win work as prime contractors
and hand out sub-contracts to subsidiaries like the China Harbor Engineering Company (CHEC).

This is the case in one of West Africa’s busiest ports, Nigeria’s Lekki Deep Sea Port. CHEC did the construction and engineering, secured loan financing from the China Development Bank (CDB), and took a 54-percent financial stake in the port which it operates on a 16-year lease.

China gains as much as $13 in trade revenues for every $1 invested in ports. A firm holding an operating lease or concession agreement reaps not only the financial benefits of all trade passing through that port but can also control access. The operator determines the allocation of piers, accepts or denies port calls, and can offer preferential rates and services for its nation’s vessels and cargo. Control over port operations by an external actor, accordingly, raises obvious sovereignty and security concerns. This is why some countries forbid foreign port operators on national security grounds.

Chinese firms hold operating concessions in 10 African ports. Despite the risks over loss of control, the trend on the continent is toward privatizing port operations for improved efficiency. Delays and poor management of African ports are estimated to raise handling costs by 50 percent over global rates.

China’s strategic priorities involving foreign ports are laid out in China’s Five-Year Plans. The current Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) talks about a “connectivity framework of six corridors, six routes, and multiple countries and ports” to advance Belt and Road construction. Notably, three of these six corridors run through Africa, landing in East Africa (Kenya and Tanzania), Egypt and the Suez region, and Tunisia. This reinforces the central role that the continent plays in China’s global ambitions. The Plan articulates a vision to build China into “a strong maritime country”—part of its larger rejuvenation as a Great Power.

China’s focus on African port development was facilitated by the “Go Out” strategy, a government initiative to provide state backing – including massive subsidies – for state-owned firms to capture new markets, especially in the developing world. One Belt One Road (known internationally as the Belt and Road Initiative) – China’s global effort to connect new trade corridors to its economy – is a product of Go Out, sometimes referred to as “Go Global.”

Africa has been a central feature of the Go Out strategy, where port infrastructure was a major impediment to expanding Africa-China trade. Heavy Chinese government subsidies and political backing encouraged Chinese shippers and port builders to seek footholds on the continent. They benefited from robust government and party-to-party ties that China cultivated over time. All told, Africa became highly attractive to China’s state-owned enterprises, despite the many risks of doing business on the continent.

China’s port development strategy has also linked up Africa’s 16 landlocked countries via Chinese-built inland transport infrastructure, facilitating the movement of goods and resources to market
and vice versa. These have come to be called One Belt One Road connector projects.

China’s growing footprint in African ports also advances Chinese military objectives. Some of the 78 port sites that Chinese firms are involved in can berth the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy
vessels based on their specifications while others can dock PLA Navy vessels on port calls.

The PLA Navy has called on the following African ports in recent years:  Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire), Gentil (Gabon), Casablanca (Morocco), Tamatave (Madagascar), Maputo (Mozambique), Tincan (Nigeria),  Pointe-Noire (Republic of Congo), Victoria (Seychelles), Durban (South Africa), Simon’s Town (South Africa).

Some of these ports have also been staging grounds for PLA military exercises. These include the ports of Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Lagos (Nigeria), Durban (South Africa), and Doraleh (Djibouti). The latter involved exercises with landlocked Ethiopia.

Chinese troops have also made use of naval and land facilities for some of their drills, including Tanzania’s Kigamboni Naval Base, Mapinga Comprehensive Military Training Center, and Ngerengere Air Force Base—all built by Chinese firms. The Awash Arba War Technical School has served a similar purpose in Ethiopia, as have bases in other countries. In total, the PLA has conducted 55 port calls and 19 bilateral and multilateral military exercises in Africa since 2000.

Beyond direct military engagements, Chinese firms handle military logistics in many African ports. For example, Chinese state-owned enterprise Hutchison Ports has a 38-year concession from the Egyptian Navy to operate a terminal at the Abu Qir Naval Base.

There has been much speculation and debate over which of these ports might be the location for additional Chinese military bases besides Doraleh in Djibouti. While the available data and decision criteria are limited, certain measures provide some indicators.

As seen in the development of Doraleh (in which Chinese firms held 23 percent of the stakes), size of Chinese shareholding of a port is an inadequate factor on its own. Nonetheless, it is noteworthy that Chinese firms hold 50 percent stakes in three West Africa ports: Kribi, Cameroon (66 percent), Lekki, Nigeria (52 percent), and Lomé, Togo (50 percent).

Previous PLA engagement is another consideration. Of the 78 African ports in which Chinese firms are known to be involved, 36 have hosted PLA port calls or military exercises. This demonstrates that they have the design features to support Chinese naval flotillas, making them potential candidates for future PLA navy bases.

Not all of these have the proven physical specifications to berth PLA vessels, however. This considers factors such as number of berths, berth length and size, and capabilities for fueling, replenishment,
and other logistics.

Beyond the physical specifications are political considerations such as strategic location, the strength of a government’s party-to-party ties with China, its ranking within China’s system of partnership prioritisation, membership in China’s One Belt One Road Initiative network, and levels of Chinese foreign direct investment and high-value Chinese assets. Commonly ignored but no less important is the strength and capacity of public opinion to shape local decisions.

Considering just the design features, seven ports stand out for the likelihood of being employed for future Chinese military use: Luanda (Angola), Doraleh (Djibouti), Mombasa (Kenya), Walvis Bay (Namibia), Lekki (Nigeria), Victoria (Seychelles), Dar es Salaam (Tanzania).

The heightened pace of China’s military drills and naval port calls in Africa in recent years has generated increased attention to these issues in the African media, think tanks, and policy discussions. The growing militarisation of China’s Africa policy is stoking concerns about the implications of more foreign bases in Africa. Some are concerned that Chinese basing scenarios could inadvertently draw African countries into China’s geopolitical rivalries, undermining the continent’s stated commitment to nonalignment. (Africa Centre for Strategic Studies) – (Photo: the harbour of Abidjan in Ivory Coast.123rf)

Witnesses of Jubilee. Mons. Christophe Munzihirwa. A Prophet of Hope.

On October 23, 1996, in Bukavu, Mons. Christophe Munzihirwa was captured by the forces of the AFDL (Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo) led by Laurent Kabila. The rebels killed him. The streets were deserted, the people were holed up in their homes, and corpses lay in the streets of the city. After twenty-nine years, the streets of Bukavu continue to witness violence and bloodshed.

Mgr. Christophe Munzihirwa was born in 1926 in Lukumbo, a small village in South Kivu, in the eastern region in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). A parish priest at the cathedral of Bukavu in the early 1960s, he joined the Jesuits in 1963 and moved to Belgium to study social sciences and economics at the University of Leuven. He returned to the Congo in 1969 and his ministry soon became that of a “man for difficult situations”.
A chaplain at the University of Kinshasa, when Mobutu in 1971 ordered all the students and seminarians to serve in the army for two years, he asked to be enlisted and joined the army as a sergeant. From 1980 to 1986 he was the provincial of the Jesuits in Central Africa (Rwanda, Congo, Burundi).

Our Lady of Peace Cathedral of Bukavu. In 1994, Mons. Christophe Munzihirwa became the archbishop of Bukavu. Photo: Timothee Rolin

On November 9, 1986, he was consecrated bishop and sent to Kosongo as coadjutor of Mgr Timothée Pirigisha. From the beginning of the 90’s he was apostolic vicar of Bukavu and in 1994 he became archbishop. In those difficult years for the Congo, he participated with compassion in the tragedy of the people of the Great Lakes region, as a man who truly loves his neighbour.
After the Rwandan genocide in 1994, Mgr. Munzihirwa became a true advocate for the thousands of Hutu refugees who flooded his diocese. He firmly believed that only a few had committed atrocities against the Tutsis and that most were innocent victims. He spoke with an evangelical voice, calling for reconciliation beyond ethnicity.
Faced with this tragedy, he said: “In these days, when mass graves are still being dug, when misery and disease can be found for several thousand kilometres, on the roads and paths, in the fields, we are disturbed by Christ’s cry from the cross: ‘Father, forgive them’. God’s mercy, which breaks the chain of revenge, calls for a change in everyone, whatever faction they belong to. It is the only thing capable of breaking once and for all the infernal spiral of revenge”.

On October 23, 1996, Mgr Munzihirwa was brutally murdered.

Many compared him to Oscar Romero, a bishop and martyr in El Salvador. When Munzihirwa was bishop of Kasongo and Mobutu ordered the town to be looted, believing that some rebel soldiers had taken refuge there, the bishop said: “I see soldiers in front of me, I see the colonel. Stop oppressing the people. I ask you; I command you: stop!” The commander wanted to arrest him and he said fearlessly, “I am ready, arrest me”.His commitment, his passion and his love for the people made him a problem for those in power, because of his total opposition to any form of violence, but also because of his absolute devotion to others and his constant search for the truth.
In Bukavu, those were days of death and anguish. The military and civilian authorities of the eastern Kivu region, the last remnants of Mobutu Sese Seko’s dictatorship left the city in the hand of Rwandan soldiers who killed whoever was in sight. The perpetrators were members of the Rwandan Tutsi minority, who accused Mobutu of giving shelter to several thousand militiamen among the hutu refugees.

In recent months, over 400,000 people have been displaced by fighting in South and North Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. UNOCHA/Francis Mweze

On October 23, 1996, Mgr Munzihirwa was brutally murdered in his town. His body was found in a small square called Nyawera. The rebels had killed everyone who passed by on foot or in a car.
Exactly one week earlier, after a declaration on the real conditions of the region and the betrayal of the Congolese authorities, the archbishop said: “Today I’ve forfeited my life. I’ve signed my death sentence”. His martyrdom was not sudden but the result of a personal itinerary, of a total faith in his Lord, of a constant and hard search, of a testimony which resulted in giving his life. He said that a Christian must bear witness of his faith, he must “give” even when facing “the most hopeless human tragedies, because there is not a moment in which the Gospel can be put aside. It is the only way in which the life of a Christian can become a sign of hope”.
Twenty-nine years have passed since the murder of Mgr. Munzihirwa. A new wave of violence has begun. Last February, the M23 rebels, supported by Rwanda, entered Bukavu.  In recent weeks, hundreds of thousands of people have been forced from their homes as the rebels advance.

Francis Mutesa

Popenguine, the ‘Lourdes’ of Senegal.

On Pentecost Tuesday, 22 May 1888, a crowd of two hundred faithful arrived at the sanctuary of Popenguine on foot, on horseback and in pirogues to venerate Our Lady of Deliverance for the first time. Over more than a century, this pilgrimage, which now attracts nearly 100,000 people each year, has become one of the high points of the Christian faith in Senegal. We joined the pilgrimage.

The beginnings of the Marian pilgrimage to Popenguine can be traced back to the evening of 29 December 1887. A few months earlier, on 15 May, Bishop Mathurin Picarda wrote to his faithful: “The purpose of this pilgrimage, which we hope will open a series of manifestations of faith and devotion towards Notre Dame de la Délivrance (Our Lady of Deliverance), is to solemnly enthrone the Virgin in the new domain we have chosen for her.”

The statue of Notre-Dame de la Délivrande. Photo: Sr. Anne Béatrice Faye.

Although there had never been an apparition of the Virgin Mary, Monsignor Picarda wanted to offer Senegalese Catholics a place of pilgrimage, inspired by the shrine of Notre-Dame de la Délivrance in Dover, Normandy, France.
The idea was born during a walk with priests, members of his congregation, from Cap de Naze to Popenguine. The place seemed providential: Popenguine means “head of the serpent”, recalling the mission of Mary, who, according to Christian tradition, crushed the head of the serpent. This place of divine grace is deeply rooted in faith and spirituality. Although specific testimonies of healing are not always documented in detail in the available sources, this shrine is known as a place where pilgrims come to seek comfort, to be listened to, and a place of hope and healing.
Notre-Dame de la Délivrance gradually became Notre-Dame de Popenguine, and every Pentecost Monday, crowds of the faithful flock there to pray to the Virgin.

Rooted in young people’s faith
The youth pilgrimage to Popenguine is a tradition deeply rooted in the Senegalese Catholic faith. Every year, thousands of young people from the various dioceses in Senegal take part in this walk of faith, covering dozens of kilometres in a spirit of prayer, sacrifice and solidarity.
The young people’s walk to Popenguine is an experience that goes far beyond a simple physical pilgrimage. It is a spiritual journey where every step is an offering, every effort a prayer. The testimonies of the pilgrims reveal just how powerful this experience is.

The youth pilgrimage to Popenguine is a tradition deeply rooted in the Senegalese Catholic faith. Photo: Ji-Elle

Many describe it as an inner transformation, healing and soothing of their spiritual or emotional wounds, which takes place as the walk progresses. Walking becomes an opportunity for reconciliation with themselves, with God and with others.
For each young person, arriving at the Popenguine shrine is a moment of grace. After hours, or even days, of walking, the pilgrims find themselves before the Virgin Mary, in a burst of thanksgiving. It is a moment of intense emotion, where tears, joy and prayer mingle. Each person arrives with his or her spiritual baggage, intentions and fatigue, but all leave renewed in faith and buoyed by new hope. The walk to Popenguine becomes not just a geographical journey, but a true inner pilgrimage, a journey to God, experienced in effort, fraternity and prayer.

Interfaith dialogue
The Popenguine pilgrimage is not merely a Christian spiritual experience. It is also a symbol of inter-religious dialogue as is practised in Senegal. The presence of Muslims in Popenguine is not anecdotal, it is a living sign of a Senegal where religious diversity is seen as an asset rather than an obstacle.
Every year, many Muslims take part in the Popenguine pilgrimage. Some come with friends or members of their Christian families, sharing their spiritual journey with kindness and openness.

The choir during the celebration of the Eucharist in the Shrine. Photo: Ji-Elle

Others come out of respect for the figure of Mary, venerated in Islam as the mother of the Prophet Jesus (Issa), and regarded as a model of piety and submission to God. This shared recognition of Mary as a spiritual figure creates a bridge between the two faiths, fostering understanding and dialogue. Popenguine is also an opportunity for intense prayer for peace and unity in Senegal. In a world where inter-religious tensions are sometimes exacerbated, the pilgrimage becomes a powerful testimony to the possibility of harmonious coexistence. Far from being a simple Christian gathering, it unveils a space where all people of goodwill, whatever their religious affiliation, come together to invoke God’s blessing on the country and the world.

Moving experiences.
Thousands of believers come to Our Lady of Popenguine in search of grace, comfort and healing. Some come with inner wounds, others with physical pains or burdens they can no longer bear alone. All leave the shrine transformed, touched by the presence of God and the intercession of Mother Mary. We met some of the people at the Popenguine Shrine and shared their spiritual experiences with us.
Awa, a young Muslim woman, carried a deep family wound. An argument with her father had separated them for years. The pain of this separation never left her. During the pilgrimage, she felt an unexpected sense of peace. During the vigil, an inner voice urged her to reach out to her father. She sent him a message, something she had never dared to do before. Against all odds, he responded with emotion, ready to renew the dialogue. For Awa, this pilgrimage was an event of true reconciliation and unexpected grace.

Mass with the Bishop in the Shrine. Popenguine is also an opportunity for intense prayer for peace and unity in Senegal. Photo: Ji-Elle

John the Baptist, a young university graduate, was going through a period of doubt and discouragement after three years of fruitless job hunting. Before the pilgrimage, he had almost given up hope. So, he entrusted his future to Mary and decided to entrust his fears and uncertainties to her. When he returned home a week later, he received a call for an interview at a company where he had been applying for several months. Against all odds, he was hired. For him, this opportunity was an answer to his prayers and proof that hope is never in vain.
Madeleine and her husband had lost their child a few months before the pilgrimage.  Devastated, they came to Popenguine with heavy hearts and full of questions.  During the procession and the moments of silence before the statue of Mother Mary, they felt a deep sense of peace and renewal of their faith. Madeleine said that for the first time since the tragedy, she was able to say: “Lord, I don’t understand, but I trust you.
Finally, Popenguine is a living shrine of faith and hope. Many visitors experience the power of faith, healing and consolation. Under the benevolent gaze of Mother Mary, they leave the Shrine with the certainty that God continues to work in the hearts of those who entrust themselves to Him.  May Mother Mary continue to accompany her children on their journey of faith and hope. (Open Photo: Senegal. The shrine of Notre Dame de la Délivrande in the town of Popenguine. (Photo: Ji-Elle)

Sr. Anne Béatrice Faye, CIC.

The Trump Effect: Reconciling China and the European Union.

The strong tensions triggered by the protectionist trade policies introduced by the new US administration open up significant opportunities for the People’s Republic of China, both in Europe and in the Indo-Pacific.

The need to structure solid supply chains, especially in a phase of strong political and economic uncertainty such as that of the present day, could in fact force a rapprochement between China and the European Union (EU), as well as favour the deepening of regional cooperation between traditionally rival Asian players.

In February, amid the American economic and trade offensive, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, already spoke of the possibility of negotiating new agreements with China, aimed at expanding trade and investment ties. In parallel, the European Parliament has lifted the restrictions that have prevented MEPs from meeting Chinese officials since 2021 and has simplified the procedure for missions to China.

These moves, coming after years of European policies aimed at implementing the strategy of economic de-risking from the People’s Republic, mark a revolution (although at the moment only rhetorical) in the EU’s position towards its Chinese partner. With the pandemic first and then the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Union had tried to progressively loosen economic ties with Beijing, limiting, among other things, the flow of direct investments in strategic sectors.

In this context, the recent opening of the EU, even if probably only tactical and aimed at sending a signal to the Trump administration, represents a relevant turning point. Even the EU’s plan to respond to the trade attack was expected for April 2, but was postponed for another 90 days; however, to be truly effective, will have to include Asian partners such as China in the medium to long term.

For its part, Beijing has welcomed the messages of openness from Brussels and has increased diplomatic pressure aimed at exploiting the emergence of apparently favourable environmental conditions. The contradictions and political and economic fractures that have emerged between the US and the EU leave ample room for manoeuvre for China, a completely unexpected dynamic just a few months ago, when Brussels announced duties against electric vehicles produced in the People’s Republic and several Chinese companies were included in the sanctions packages against Russia.

Since the beginning of 2025, therefore, Chinese diplomacy has wasted no time and has promptly sided with the Europeans, both on the Ukrainian dossier, where China is asking for the EU’s involvement in the negotiations, and on the issue of contrasting American trade policies. In a broader sense, China aims to form a common front with the EU against perceived US unilateralism, animating the front of countries that feel politically betrayed and that risk suffering the greatest repercussions from the aggressive trade policies imposed by Washington.

This posture, in addition to confirming the desire to show closeness to European partners and recover ground on the Central-Eastern front, where the actors most affected by the Russian-Ukrainian war reside, also appears to be linked to the country’s general interests,
not least those in the Indo-Pacific.

In this sense, admitting the EU’s exclusion from negotiations on the future European security architecture clashes with the Chinese principle of opposition to the interference of third-party actors in regional political quadrants. At the same time, China does not perceive positively, also for historical reasons, the exclusion from political negotiations of actors directly involved in the disputes.

Finally, an excessive strengthening of the Russian post-conflict position creates some concerns for Beijing, especially in light of the relationship consolidated by Moscow with relevant Asian actors, such as Myanmar and North Korea.

But the efforts of Chinese diplomacy, at this stage, go well beyond the European context and are concentrated above all in Asia, in the country’s wider neighbourhood. In recent months, in fact, while waiting to understand the scope of the measures announced by the new US administration, the People’s Republic gradually proceeded to thaw relations with India, also in order to avoid tensions along the border at a time when neither actor appears interested in the clash.

In parallel, the trip to Tokyo by the Chinese Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, on the occasion of the 11th meeting with his counterparts from Japan and South Korea, paved the way for the first trilateral economic dialogue between the countries in five years that was held at the end of March in Seoul. On this occasion, the Trade Ministers of the three Asian countries agreed on the desire to cooperate at the highest levels in view of potential agreements aimed at facilitating regional trade.

In addition to the implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), of which the three countries are an integral part, the exchange concerned the revitalisation of the dialogues on the Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

The news comes following the repeated and so far, failed attempts by Japan and South Korea to obtain ad hoc exemptions from the sanctions regimes introduced by the Trump administration. As recently as March 27, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba had declared that the 25% duties on cars and components exported to the United States would have triggered a strong reaction and that all options were on the table.

Even the South Korean leadership itself, aware of the country’s strong vulnerability to protectionist policies, asked the United States in March for specific exemptions, which have so far never been obtained. China, therefore, has so far shown a fair amount of skill in exploiting tensions and contradictions triggered by controversial American policies, and in perspective, its position could further strengthen, especially if the cracks in the Euro-Atlantic bloc consolidate and the distance between Washington and its partners in the Indo-Pacific widens.

However, a potential economic rapprochement in the short term will have to deal with the lack of political alignment in the medium and long term. From this perspective, therefore, only an irreparable rift between Washington and its partners could favour the Chinese strategy. (Photo: China and European Union flag. 123rf)

Tiziano Marino/CeSI

 

 

 

The Solomon Islands. Troubled in the Pacific.

Strong tensions and power games between China, the West and Australia are crossing the Pacific Ocean. The Solomon Islands are at the centre of many interests.

The Solomon Islands are not prepared to be considered Australia’s “backyard”. And even if tensions between the capitals of the two Oceanian countries have decreased, they more or less continue underground and they are also linked to the interests that China and the West have in the Pacific. In Canberra, in 2022, the Labor Party of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese took office, while in April 2024 in Honiara, 1,600 kilometres to the northeast, the combative and controversial Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare had to give up his seat to former Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele.The basic choices, however, do not change. The security pact signed by the Solomon Islands with China in 2022 remains. And the contents of the agreement continue to be secret.

Map of Solomon Islands. The Factbook

There is the widespread suspicion that, at a certain point, it will allow Beijing to establish a military presence in the middle of the Pacific. Manele, however, is not as inclined as Sogavare to the bellicose rhetoric then generously reciprocated by the liberal Scott Morrison in Canberra until his electoral defeat. The end of the manifest tensions has not, however, reduced the intensity of the work, largely underground, that China and the West are carrying out for a sort of preventive occupation of the immense area of the Pacific Ocean. China – except for the centuries-old presence of thousands of traders and businessmen – has only appeared in the area in recent decades.
The United States left its mark with the decisive battles of the Second World War against the Japanese. England was the colonial power until half a century ago, then disengaging from a military and largely diplomatic point of view. But now Beijing has arrived to shake up the scene, making itself highly visible everywhere with various forms of collaboration for development – and in some cases, security – in Fiji, Kiribati, Vanuatu as well as the Solomon Islands.

Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele, since 2 May 2024.

It is precisely in the latter that Chinese penetration has been easier and deeper, due to the traditional ethnic and political instability of the country. The already mentioned Manasseh Sogavare – with a polemical temperament and hostile to Australia and the West, with the then Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele, had formally recognized the People’s Republic of China in 2019, abandoning Taiwan, which had to close its diplomatic representation.
The orientation compass had been summarised in the slogan “Look North” “Let’s look North” – instead of just towards the South (Australia and New Zealand), diversifying partners and making them compete with one another, with the idea of gaining from it. And China has not skimped on contributions to public infrastructure especially with the support of the Pacific Games in Honiara in 2023 and the new large city stadium.
The transition from Taiwan to Beijing, however, was not painless. It has reignited the age-old rivalry between the island of Malaita, a close friend of Taipei and where a third of the archipelago’s approximately 750,000 inhabitants live or originate – and the rest of the country, in particular, the island of Guadalcanal with its capital Honiara. When Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare refused to resign over the issue of China, at the end of a march on Parliament in November 2021, protesters set fire to Chinatown, forcing the government to request urgent help from police forces from Australia, Papua New Guinea and Fiji.

Solomon Islands Local Market. 123rf

The Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (Ramsi) was dismantled only in 2017 after almost two decades of operations in the country following even more intense ethnic clashes between the same factions. Tensions between the national government and the provincial government of Auki in Malaita persist and appear difficult to resolve. It is easy to imagine that the presence of growing Chinese communities in the small Pacific states and the concern, even sincere, for their safety offers Beijing an opportunity and an ideal pretext to establish security pacts that are not directly military but still armed. We are not talking about the army but the police. Even more so if, as happened in Honiara in November 2021, the Chinese district ends up under attack with human and commercial losses. Today, however, it is not only the Australian and Pacific police who support, integrate and train their Solomon Islands counterpart, but also the Chinese ones, with the secret memorandum of understanding of 2022 that could contain more and leaves the door open to suspicion.

Flag of China and the national flag of Solomon Islands. Shutterstock/esfera

The context is that of an archipelago of over 900 islands, of which only six are of considerable size, which became completely independent from England only in 1978 and is still part of the Commonwealth. Although not exactly a failed state, it remains a substantially unfinished nation. Unlike neighbouring Papua New Guinea, which is much larger and ethnically more diverse, the Solomons have not yet succeeded in harmonizing the most significant island components into an orderly national political system. They have always renounced a national army, entrusting all forms of internal security and national protection to a few hundred policemen. But for thirty years now they have needed external help for the same purpose. The West is largely recovering from the disadvantage accumulated with its absence from the Pacific scene since the post-war period and the consequent Chinese counterattack. The US has only recently reopened the embassy in Honiara, which was closed in 1993. The country was one of the most affected during the Second World War and there is a palpable fear of suffering the same fate in the event of a new global conflict, this time between China and the United States, of which the Pacific would inevitably be the main theatre.
For its part, the population is asking not only for peace and stability but also for radical improvements to the infrastructure, especially land and sea communications, to be able to move and sell or export their products. At least 75% of the inhabitants still live on subsistence agriculture, mostly in very remote villages and on islands hundreds of kilometres from Honiara. However, neither China nor the others reach there, because what matters is being present and being noticed in the proximity of the centres of power and control of the crucial hubs of the country. (Open Photo: Children on the way to school with a canoe during sunrise in the Solomon Islands.123rf)

Giorgio Licini

 

Egypt. The end of the City of the Dead.

With an investment of billions of euros, the new administrative capital of Egypt is one of the main projects of President Al Sisi. Its development will lead to the disappearance of the City of the Dead,
an emblem of Cairo.

An uncomfortable silence. You can’t hear the noise of cars stirring up dust or the dry earth of the ground. Not even the call to prayer and the solemnity of the verses from the Quran can break the weight of a unique place. In the labyrinth of the City of the Dead in Cairo, Egypt, curious eyes occasionally peek behind the tattered curtains of the windows and under the frames of the doors that welcome the mausoleums that house the tombs of about a million Cairenes.Three men collect the bricks that they had using a few days earlier to build a house and, with the help of a rusty wheelbarrow, form small mounds of debris. In the background, three ruined walls reveal the asphalt road that surrounds the City of the Dead, also known as Al-‘Arafa.

General view of the Northern Cemetery, part of the City of the Dead in Cairo, Egypt. 123rf

A woman appears in the door-frame of her house. Accompanied by one of her daughters, she allows a glimpse of the living room of the house. In the centre of the room is the tomb of an unknown person. She nods and, a couple of seconds later, disappears into her house.
The City of the Dead, one of the oldest active necropolises in the world, with over 14 centuries of history, has been sacrificed to the urban development plans of Egyptian President Abdelfatah al-Sisi.
In May 2023, the country’s government began demolishing the historic mausoleums, despite opposition from UNESCO and their status as a World Heritage Site since 1979.
The Egyptian leader’s new plan calls for connecting downtown Cairo with the new administrative capital, a road that will result in the demolition of tombs over 1,300 years old, including those of Taqi al-Din al-Maqrizi,
a Cairo historian.

Dual immigration
It was during the 20th century that the City of the Dead began to be densely populated due to several historical and social factors. During the 1950s and 1960s, Cairo experienced unprecedented population growth, driven by rural migration to urban areas that outstripped the capacity of urban centres to accommodate the new inhabitants.Due to political inaction and the absence of urbanization policies that failed to meet the demand for affordable housing, thousands of people left the city centre in search of alternatives in uninhabited areas, even cemeteries.

The City of the Dead, one of the oldest active necropolises in the world, has been sacrificed to the urban development plans of Egyptian President Abdelfatah al-Sisi. 123rf

This massive interurban relocation coincided with two major war crises in the region: the Six-Day War in 1967 and the Yom Kippur conflict in 1973. Both events contributed to the displacement of entire communities.Seeking temporary refuge, thousands of families found short-term accommodation in the City of the Dead, whose mausoleums feature underground rooms and courtyards. What was supposed to be a temporary outlet has become the most populated necropolis in the world, in the absence of government intervention to prevent it.

Demolition and eviction of families
The demolition of houses in the city of the dead began in 2019. There are no precise figures on the exact number of people involved since the central government does not relocate them and non-governmental organizations do not have free and guaranteed access to the area. Eviction notices have been posted on the fronts of hundreds of houses notifying residents of the imminent demolition of their homes.
The demolition of the historic necropolis is due to the project to build a highway connecting the centre of Cairo to the new administrative capital, one of the urban whims of the current president. The route and planning of the new road passes over the City of the Dead, indifferent to its inhabitants and its historical importance.
These initiatives, although led by the central government, also have the support of local authorities in Cairo, in particular Major General Ibrahim Abdel Hady, deputy governor of the western region of the capital. The last stretch of dirt road, just levelled, coincides with the curve of an already paved road, where traffic is very heavy. When it joins the asphalt strip, after more than 60 kilometres, a row of skyscrapers stands out in the middle of the desert. This is the new administrative capital.

Graves inside the City of the Dead district in the suburbs of Cairo. Shutterstock/John Wreford

The tall buildings are accompanied by a couple of whitewashed mosques, whose marble floors do not shine, and by a hundred or so houses built and still uninhabited. It is an oasis of 730 square kilometres intended for the political, economic and ministerial upper classes, a refuge for the country’s oligarchs.
Construction work on the project began in 2017 and involved a workforce of 150,000 people. According to official data, 23 billion euros were spent on the first phase of construction alone, which is scheduled for completion in 2030. Near the new presidential palace and in front of the Arc de Triomphe, there is a grandstand with a capacity of about 500 spectators. At the top, engraved in gold, is the eagle of Saladin holding the Egyptian national flag on its chest.
In addition to political influence, military influence is also present in the project for the new administrative capital. A public company, 51% financed by the armed forces, is leading the construction work. 29% is owned by the Egyptian Ministry of Housing.

The Mark of China
The project was first unveiled in March 2015 in Sharm el-Sheikh, about a year after Sisi came to power in Egypt. Initially, the plans were led by a consortium close to Emaar, a construction company from the United Arab Emirates, and SOM, an architectural firm from the United States. At the end of the same year, coinciding with the official visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Sisi decided to hand over the construction contract to the China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC), a Chinese public entity. CSCEC is the world’s largest construction company and the eighth largest contractor in terms of sales in the foreign market. In addition to its role in the new administrative capital, there are several Chinese-led projects in Egypt.

Central Business District (CBD) of the New Administrative Capital of Egypt. The construction contract is in the hands of the China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC), a Chinese public entity. CC BY-SA 4.0/Mahan84848)

For example, in the China-Egypt Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone, near the Suez Canal, it has built a development area that houses Chinese and Egyptian companies in sectors such as textiles, machinery and petrochemicals, among others. China has also collaborated on the electrified light rail project that connects Cairo with another of the most urbanized peripheral cities in the area, the city of 10 Ramadan.
China’s influence also permeates other sectors, such as culture. Chinese archaeological teams collaborate with Egypt on joint excavations, such as at the Temple of Montu in Luxor, as well as other educational collaboration programs. (Open Photo: Ancient minarets of the tombs in the City of the Dead in Cairo. Shutterstock/akimov Konstantin)

Soraya Aybar Laafou

Kenya. The Pokot traditional religious sensibility.

Rather than talking about the religion of the Pokot, an ethnic group living in West Pokot and Baringo counties in Kenya, it is better to talk about the specifics of the Pokot’s ‘religious sensibility’ and how it manifests itself.

The sensibility is one of the Pokot traditional religiosities, which has changed due to the influence by Christianity. Nonetheless, the fact that evangelical churches and “mafuta pole – dini ya roho”(name in Kiswahili: Slow oil – spiritual religion) – a sort of African independent church,  are strong in West Pokot proves that the traditional spirituality influences todays’ experience of the divine and transcendence (whether it is about God or spirits of nature).

Two young Pokot men. People invoke God for blessings and in times of need. File swm

The entire Pokot tribal system is “a kind of religious system”. This system is not characterised by a belief in a supreme being, ‘God’ and the relationship of individuals and communities to him.
Pokot religiosity focuses on “harmonious relationships among members of society and the fulfilment of the individual as a person.”
The centre of the Pokot religious experience is “life.” Life can mostly be experienced at the level of the individual rather than society because if the individual feels fulfilled, he will be happy; this is self-fulfilment. The longing for “life” is at the core of the Pokot beliefs. These beliefs are the foundation of their rules, and the rules are the means to a fulfilled life.

Life as a Blessing
Life cannot be seen as something concrete; it must be experienced. Life is unexplainable in the absence of systematic explanations of what the Pokot feel and think, and how they feel it. The actions people do, the rites, manners and traditions, are a groping in their efforts to explain it.
Social rules and beliefs are there to create life. Ceremonies to remove that which hinders life. Blessings to promote life in the individual and in the society. Sacred places are those that show flourishing life (energy). The elders who have lived for a long time are the ones to bless, to transmit life. Witches are those who kill life in secret.

Children are an important factor in Pokot religiosity. File swm

Life is the reason for existence and is within itself, a blessing. Sin, on the other hand, is a curse that is the result of people’s actions and brings misfortune and death. Children are an important factor in Pokot religiosity because they show the fruitfulness of the living, and because children will remember their parents, and in the children; a way to continue living after passing to hades “ngeny” or “tongi“.
Cattle are also important because they are the best way to live a comfortable life (in traditional setups). Cattle are also synonymous with wealth and bring honour and praise to the owner. In this sense, the owner is praised for his ability to look after his possessions and for his courage, as in the past many cattle were won or lost in raids.
The Pokot recognise the existence of some unknown beings that can be called “spirits”. Although no one can see them, they are very real to them. They influence people’s daily lives. They are probably more powerful than humans, but on the other hand, they can be controlled by humans. Their influence is usually felt when something goes wrong, especially when someone gets sick. The more powerful they are, the less they interfere or bother people.

The Spirits
‘Oy‘ are ordinary spirits, no one claims to have seen them. They appear when they possess a person. The understanding is that there are many of them and they all possess each other, ‘oy‘ being a plural noun. When someone goes mad, it is explained as ‘being possessed by ‘oy‘, so that person is called ‘chepoy‘.
The disruption of the individual’s normal life, and by extension of the community, is resolved by the rite of ‘kilokat’, which turns out to be an exorcism. The ‘oy’ are sent away from the possessed person. Nobody knows how this works, but in the same way that a person is possessed, they can be driven out. Of course, not all mad people are ‘possessed’, this is proved when all remedies have failed to cure them. Then people will just say ‘kinyar möt’ (his/her head has gone mad).

A Pokot family with their friends. The centre of the Pokot religious experience is “life.” File swm

Onyötoy. (sn. onyöt). These are the “spirits of the dead”. They can appear to people in dreams or as ghosts. Their appearance is unwelcome and shows that they are unhappy where they are (Pökot say they come from “ngwen” or “tongď” = Hades). So, when they bother people, they need to be pacified so that things go back to normal. The way to do this is with “pďtöt, lyokat” or “moy“.
For some strange reason, people associated them with ‘demons’. And today ‘evil’ is also called ‘onyöt‘. However, in the traditional understanding of pökot, the evils they bring are not related to sinful actions or temptations. But since sin disturbs harmony just as much as onyötoy, people conclude that they are related. Their relationship is based on the consequences, which seem to be similar. (Christian writings used this term “onyöt” and “onytöy” for devil and demons… but since it is not the same, good translations prefer the neologism “setanian” (Satan, with no plural).

Cattle are also synonymous with wealth and bring honour and praise to the owner. File swm

Ilat is the most powerful of the traditional Pökot spirits. It is the spirit of rain and water. It lives in caves, bushy woods, and deep wells. It appears during storms. Some people claim to have seen it. It can possess people, much as ‘oy‘ does. Once it is determined that ‘ilöt‘ is the cause of the possession, it is sent away with ‘kilokat‘. “Ilat” is the spirit invoked in the oaths and curses of the elders. When someone dies it is said “kicheng ilat“, this spirit has taken him/her.
Töroröt is the modern name for ‘God’. It means something clear, openly seen. But the term is new. A century ago, no one spoke of “Töroröt“, the greatest spirit was “Ilat“. Today, people invoke God for blessings and in times of need. This being has become a powerful ‘helper’. Young generations do not know the history of the name, nor the role of “ilat”.

The sacred places are large trees. File swm

Sacred Places
The sacred places are large trees, especially those with milky sap (associated with life because of the milk that was the main food of the Pökot). Common trees of this kind are: mokongwö, konchilwö, simotwö, syoyöwö and big mountains (especially Mtelo, because of the concentration of clouds on its top, also related to Ilat). Some trees may be more sacred than others, usually these trees are considered to be the “dwelling place of the Ilat”, no one can desecrate these places.
Also, places where important community ceremonies have taken place are sacred in a way, and cannot be desecrated; because blessings have been performed in these places, they have been the path of life. Desecration brings bad omens, so something must be done before it happens. What the elders perform are special sacrifices made for these occasions called “putyon“. (Open Photo: Pokot women during a traditional ceremony. Shutterstock/Cheboite Titus)

Herreros Baroja Tomás

The AI challenge for Africa.

Artificial intelligence is the main game in town on the planet. On 3 and 4 April, Rwanda will host the first Global AI Summit on Africa. The continent is lagging behind others in terms of preparedness, but it is also bursting with initiatives.

Participants will discuss how AI can drive economic growth, innovation, and workforce development while ensuring ethical governance and risk mitigation. Issues such as education, building infrastructure, and preserving sovereignty will be addressed, as well as investment, governance, and ethics. Discussions will focus on national AI strategies and the role of emerging technologies such as quantum computing and robotics.The Artificial Intelligence African Council, which will bring together representatives from 40 African countries to promote the use of new technologies on the continent, is expected to be launched during the summit. This initiative follows the African Union’s assessment that AI is a strategic asset critical to achieving the aspirations of Agenda 2063 (The Africa We Want) and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Photo: courtesy GAISA

Adoption of AI technologies is growing rapidly across Africa. According to the 2024 Stanford AI Report, 27% of Kenyans use ChatGPT daily. The hope is that AI can fill gaps in education and health systems, improve agricultural yields, and provide access to financial services for people who remain excluded from the banking system.
However, the rapid adoption of foreign AI technologies raises many concerns. Data privacy is a key issue, as is the location of data storage. This highlights the need for robust AI governance policies and data protection laws to prevent data loss or theft for foreign technology companies. In addition, surveillance by AI technologies poses a significant risk to citizens in countries with weak institutional
and governance systems.

The AI impact in Africa
According to a recent OECD study, 27% of jobs worldwide are in occupations at high risk of automation, as up to a quarter of the work currently done by humans could be done by AI systems. The impact could be enormous in Africa, a continent where economic growth, while spectacular, cannot absorb the number of young people entering the labour market each year and could increase the brain drain to Europe
or other destinations.
Several African countries have embarked on the AI path but so far, only three have fully developed policies and less than ten have national AI strategies. AI labs have emerged in universities in Ghana, Uganda, and South Africa, centred on utilizing AI for social impact.

In Africa, many startups and public organizations are beginning to invest in the development of AI applications in health, transportation and agriculture. 123rf

One example is the SignTalk project of the Responsible Artificial Intelligence Lab (RAIL) at Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, which aims to enhance healthcare accessibility for the hearing and speech impaired through a Ghanaian Sign Language translation system.
In an interview with Radio France Internationale, Paulin Melatagia, head of the research team on AI and data science at the University of Yaoundé, says that Africa has already begun its transformation. Many startups and public organizations are beginning to invest in the development of AI applications in health, transportation and agriculture. But the pace of transformation varies widely from country to country.

A flight operator scans a package barcode before loading it into the Zipline drone. Rwanda, in partnership with the U.S. company Zipline, has developed a drone delivery system. Photo: Zipline

Concrete examples of AI applications in Africa illustrate its transformative potential. In Nigeria, data platforms like Zenvus are making it easier for farmers to access critical information, leading to improved yields and agricultural productivity. In South Africa, a startup called ThisIsMe has developed an AI-powered platform that allows banks to more accurately and securely verify customer identities.
Rwanda and Kenya are at the forefront of the continent’s drone revolution. Rwanda, in partnership with the U.S. company Zipline, has developed a drone delivery system that can transport blood to remote clinics and hospitals in less than half an hour, compared to three hours in the past. Rwanda’s success led to Ghana also adopting the Zipline system, while encouraging African companies such as Niger’s Drone Africa Service, Nigeria’s Zenvus, Rwanda’s Charis UAS and Zambia’s i-Drone Services Limited to also develop drone technology.

Drone Operators
By 2023, there were more than 300 licensed drone operators in Kenya. Local authorities are developing a drone facility in Laikipia with AALTO, a subsidiary of European aircraft manufacturer Airbus, to serve as a home base for Zephyr drones, which will conduct long-duration flights in the stratosphere that can serve as communication relays and high-resolution surveillance platforms.
Kenyan authorities have created an impressive innovation hub between Nairobi and Mombasa called Konza Technopolis. The evolution of drone technology could help African countries leapfrog over bad roads and unreliable power grids in the same way that cell phone technology overcame the lack of landline telecommunications. At the current rate, Africa’s drone industry could create more than 200,000 jobs by 2030, according to the World Bank.

Last August, Baykar announced that Kenyan operators had completed a specialized training program at Baykar’s pilot training centre in Keşan, Turkey. Photo: Baykar

Drone technology has also transformed the defense sector. According to the UN, attack drones are being used in the Democratic Republic of Congo by Rwandan-backed M23 rebels and the Rwandan Defense Force. Similar Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 drones are being used in the Sahel against jihadists by the armies of Burkina-Faso and Niger.
However, African countries are lagging in the global adoption of AI. Currently, no African nation ranks among the top 50 countries in the world in terms of government readiness for AI. Several conditions need to be in place to enable such development.
African nations face significant challenges such as inadequate infrastructure, limited connectivity, low digital literacy, and a lack of robust AI governance and regulatory frameworks. Perhaps the competition between Chinese and American tech companies could offer African governments a strategic advantage in attracting investment from both sides in these areas.

Data availability
Another major barrier is data availability. Creating AI solutions that address Africa’s problems requires African data, but little data is collected on Africa. ChatGPT, for example, has been criticized for alleged biases about African realities due to the limited amount of African data used to train these models, which is why it is important to develop solutions that understand and process African languages.
There is a shortage of data centres on the continent, which houses less than 2% of the world’s equipment needed to process the data used by AI applications. According to Alex Tsado, founder of the South African expert group Alliance4AI, only 5% of Africa’s talent has access to the computing power and resources needed to perform complex tasks.

Africa can benefit from artificial intelligence, but first it needs to develop its infrastructure, especially electricity and data connectivity. 123rf

In addition, there is a lack of local skills and a context of underfunding for African companies in the sector. Although Africa represents 17% of the world’s population, it produces less than 1% of the world’s AI, according to analyst Bright Simons of the Ghanaian think tank Imani.
There is a consensus that Africa can benefit from artificial intelligence, but first needs to develop its infrastructure, especially electricity and data connectivity. Only 37% of Africans use the Internet, compared to 90% in Western Europe, Russia and the Americas, and around 70% in Arab countries and Asia. It is no coincidence that sub-Saharan Africa ranks last in Oxford Insights’ Government AI Readiness Index 2024. Only Mauritius, South Africa and Rwanda scored above 50% in AI readiness.
The best-prepared countries are, not surprisingly, those with the highest access to telephones and electricity.
The same countries appear in all three rankings. According to Oxford Insights, South Africa, Namibia, Egypt, Morocco, Mali, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal and Tunisia are among the countries with the best telephone access.Not surprisingly, six of these countries appear in the AI readiness rankings.

There is a shortage of data centres on the continent, which houses less than 2% of the world’s equipment needed to process the data used by AI applications. 123rf

South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, and Egypt are also among the countries with the best access to electricity. Internet is not sufficiently available, but even when it is, the high cost of Internet access, smartphones and broadband hinders the widespread adoption of AI.
As Fahd Azaroual points out in a paper on the challenges and opportunities of AI in Africa published by the Policy Centre for the New South in May 2024, another constraint to the adoption of AI intelligence in Africa is the development of conducive ecosystems involving stakeholders such as policymakers, universities, technology companies, startups, civil society, and international organizations. Another important enabling condition is regulation.
The African Union introduced a legally binding framework with the Malabo Convention on Cybersecurity and Personal Data Protection, which will come into force in 2023 and aims to harmonize data protection laws across Africa. However, with only 15 countries having ratified it so far, its impact remains limited. (Open Photo: 123rf)

François Misser

The Council of Nicaea. The Creed of Hope.

This year marks the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea (325 AD). It was the first ecumenical gathering to seek a fuller understanding of the faith. Beyond its theological significance, it has also shown that common discernment is a way of hope for a pilgrim Church of the Jubilee.

In 1300, Pope Boniface VIII surrendered to the faith shown by the throngs of pilgrims who had spontaneously flocked to Rome and granted them the Jubilee indulgence, namely, the remission of temporal pains due to sin. Since then, the Catholic Church has celebrated a Jubilee Year and, from 1470 onwards, not every 100 or 50 years, but every 25 years. The emphasis is on forgiveness and reconciled relationships with God, oneself and one another.
The 2025 Jubilee Year ‘Pilgrims of hope’ looks to a future with a message of hope. Hope is not synonymous with illusion or optimism based on world forces. Nor is it escapism, denial or resignation amidst the suffering in the world.

Mosaic of Christ Pantocrator (“ruler over all”) from the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey. Photo: Dianelos Georgoudis

The message of hope for the future is fundamentally one of trust in God’s faithful commitment. Faith, trust and fidelity have the same root: steadfastness.
The Jubilee of Hope strengthens the joy of Christians, assured of God’s unwavering love for all He has created and in whom He places hope. God hopes that His image in us will be revealed, strengthened and will radiate for the world to see.
In his first encyclical, Lumen fidei, Pope Francis presented faith as a “memory of the future”, memoria futuri, which is not fixed on a bygone past, but it is the evocation of a promise, in Abraham and then in Jesus Christ (LF §9, 10, 15). Faith and hope are based on God’s commitment, in His Word and in history. Hope is God’s precious gift to men and women; a gift that makes them grow in self-confidence and prevents them from discouragement or resignation.In 2025, we commemorate the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, the first ecumenical council to formulate faith in Jesus, true God and true man, a faith professed by all Christians. The circumstances, debates and decrees of this Council have left a lasting mark on Christian history. How can they guide their hope for today?

Circumstances surrounding the Council of Nicaea
The first council was undoubtedly the meeting of the apostles and ancients in Jerusalem, (Acts 15), gathered to decide a crucial question: should non-Jewish converts be circumcised and made to obey the Law of Moses in order to become Christians? Various local councils took place after this first council, before Emperor Constantine convened a general council at Nicaea. Why did he call for it?
Priest Arius, a theologian from Alexandria, Egypt, had stated in 318 – in defiance of his bishop Alexander’s doctrine – that Jesus Christ, though indeed the Son of God, was not God Himself.

Icon depicting the Emperor Constantine and the bishops of the First Council of Nicaea (325) holding the Niceno–Constantinopolitan Creed of 381. Reproduction: Médiathèque chrétienne.

According to Arius, Jesus Christ was created by God the Father at a specific moment in time. To infer that Jesus was God would imply, for Arius’ views, to overshadow the uniqueness of God and the divinity of the Father. He maintained that Jesus was a creature subordinated to the Father, and that there was a time when the Son was non-existent. This is tantamount to denying the eternal existence of the Son. The quarrel between priest and bishop escalated, and local councils failed to settle it. Hence Emperor Constantine decided to convoke an ecumenical council in Nicaea, in present-day Turkey. The emperor’s involvement in religious matters has been criticized as a prelude to confusion between or interferences by religious and political spheres. The military means used in this turbulent period were indeed shocking.
The edict of 313, which put an end to Christian persecution, and the convening of the Council of Nicaea in 325, were also means of guaranteeing a certain form of peace and progress towards unity.
Some 300 bishops were present at Nicaea to examine Arius’ position as well as priests, including Arius, deacons, theologians and philosophers – some of these were not even Christians.
Based on the Gospel, the Council affirmed that Jesus was truly man and truly God, and that He saved humanity from sin and death through His two natures united in His one person.
Jesus is not just a better, superior or exemplary man. True God, consubstantial with the Father, and incarnate in the Virgin Mary, He communicates divine life, reconciles, heals in depth and saves humankind, which no man can do. Christ, the mediator of salvation through His dual nature, is the central affirmation of the Christian faith.

Faith is a truth to be believed, experienced and understood. Photo: WCC

Debates flared up, because what was at stake was not a quarrel about words or currents of thought, but in fact the very heart of the Christian faith. This was still the scandal to Jews and folly to the Greeks which St Paul refers to (1 Cor 1:23). False doctrines have also spread since apostolic times. The Council of Nicaea is called ecumenical for two reasons: firstly, and for the first time, it addressed the Christian world as a whole (oikumene designates the inhabited universe, the known world). Emperor Constantine sent a letter of convocation to all the bishops of the Roman Empire, as well as to a Scythian bishop (the Scythian territory now includes the Ukraine, Belarus and Azerbaijan) and a Persian bishop (Iran). Secondly, its decisions were to be received and applied throughout the Christian world. Arius’ doctrine continued to spread after Nicaea and included bishops among its adherents, but the Trinitarian creed was reaffirmed in 381 at the Council of Constantinople, where it was supplemented by developments on the Incarnation and the Holy Spirit (as God, He is Lord, He gives life; He proceeds from the Father
and, with the Father and the Son, receives the same adoration
and glorification).

Nicaea today
The Church currently recites the Nicene- Constantinople Creed, not the Nicene Creed alone. Nicaea consecrates both the fruitfulness of theological effort in the interpretation of Scripture and the right of the Church gathered in ecumenical council to specify the content of the Christian faith by a dogmatic definition (as occurred with the incorporation of the word ‘consubstantial’ into the creed), which manifests the progress made in the explanation of the Revelation.
The Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed is used in the liturgy and personally by believers. It is a reliable reference to use when meeting people who ask questions about one’s faith. It also has practical life implications. If God is the creator of all visible beings, how can we regard a person with contempt or hatred? If there is only one Lord Jesus Christ, why create idols (authorities, stars, money, ourselves…)?

Bishop. Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, WCC Moderator, Pope Francis, and Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay, WCC general secretary, during a visit to the Vatican on 23 March 2023. Photo: Vatican Media

The creed enables Christians to find common ground on a clearly stated basis, including philosophy. Faith is a truth to be believed, experienced and understood. Its authority is recognized in ecumenical dialogue. Protestants agree with the Nicene-Constantinople creed, and at the same time formulate “confessions of faith” specific to their church, updating it, or emphasizing a particular point, but without discrediting it.
The main turning point at Nicaea was to establish that the Church’s major decisions should be taken in ecumenical councils, with representatives from the whole inhabited earth, and not in a sectorized manner. Other theological issues have been debated throughout history (the images of God and the saints at Nicaea II, the Eucharist and ministry at Trent, the renewal of ecclesiology at Vatican II).

His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. This year Orthodox Christians will celebrate Easter together with Catholics and Protestants. Photo: EPpress

The Catholic Church has continued the practice of ecumenical councils, though now convened by the Pope, but without the voting participation of Orthodox and Protestants. The Orthodox held their ecumenical council in Crete in 2016. In October 2024 the synod on synodality proposed an ecumenical synod on mission (Synod Final Document §138).
Ecumenical dialogues have been held for over 60 years on specific points of doctrine. This year Orthodox Christians will celebrate Easter together with Catholics and Protestants. The age-old hope that a common date will be adopted may well be realized, as the still-divided Christians have not given up on this issue.
We are no longer in the logic of Nicaea and its exclusionary anathemas. While there are no emperors convoking ecumenical councils, a common search continues, by synodal means.
The Churches see themselves less as enemies than as partners, and seek to cultivate the exchange of gifts. God’s fundamental promise is the gathering of all humanity into His kingdom of justice and peace. The hope of Christians is unwavering. (Opening of the Council of Nicaea (325) by Emperor Constantine I the Great (foreground) by Cesare Nebbia (c.1536–c.1614). Wikimedia/picryl.com)

Marie-Hélène Robert, OLA

Photo Gallery – Comboni Youth Movement at World Youth Day

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