Advertisement

Jesuits in Africa Call for Concerted Efforts in Fight against HIV/AIDS

Credit: Shutterstock

By Magdalene Kahiu

Nairobi, 03 December, 2023 / 8:52 pm (ACI Africa).

The President of the Jesuit Conference of Africa and Madagascar (JCAM) has called for collaborative efforts to fight HIV/AIDS.

In his statement on World Aids Day that was marked on Friday, December 1, Fr. José Minaku noted that while the world has witnessed significant progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS, the war against it is not over.

“A calamity may touch a few, but its solution involves all,” Fr. Minaku said, and added that the fight against HIV/AIDS “cannot be left solely to an individual or a few” but “must be a shared responsibility.”

“The efforts of all stakeholders, including young people, engaged in transparent, accountable, and sustainable innovations will bring a swift resolution to the challenge,” he said.

The priest emphasized the need for concerted efforts to fight the pandemic saying, “An African proverb says that a falling tree will crush innocent babies, but when the webs of a spider join together, they can trap a lion.”

Advertisement

He said efforts “must go beyond health and medicine to touch all dimensions of well-being.”

“Effective solutions must put the affected community and those infected by HIV and AIDS at the center,” the member of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) says in his message for the annual event marked on December 1 since 1988.

This year, the event is celebrated under the theme “Let the communities lead!” 

In his message, the JCAM President observed that the 2023 theme “rightly recognizes the agency of the affected people and their communities while admitting the futility of action that excludes the active participation of every member of society.”

“It emphasizes the importance of thinking and acting together. It is a pronouncement that no such problem belongs to one person,” he said and added, “Let the communities lead” is a call to engagement for all, a call to collaboration in the mission of the Lord.”

More in Africa

South Africa

News of Cardinal Brislin’s Transfer from Cape Town “left us with heavy hearts”: Auxiliary Bishop in South Africa

Read the article
Magdalene Kahiu

Magdalene Kahiu is a Kenyan journalist with passion in Church communication. She holds a Degree in Social Communications from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). Currently, she works as a journalist for ACI Africa.

Trending

You may also like

The Vatican and Microsoft have created a 3D digital model of St. Peter’s Basilica using the latest in artificial intelligence to offer a new way to experience the nearly 2,000-year history of the tomb of St. Peter. / Credit: Microsoft La Basilica Di San Pietro: AI-Enhanced Experience

Discover the History of St. Peter’s Basilica in New Microsoft Oline AI-enhanced 3D Model

Accessible worldwide at virtual.basilicasanpietro.va, the free interactive platform allows anyone in the world to “visit” the virtual 3D model of...

An external view of the Chapel of the Ascension on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem during the procession of the Franciscan friars after the first vespers of the Ascension solemnity on May 8, 2024. The procession circled the chapel three times. / Credit: Marinella Bandini

Catholics Ascend to Mount Olives, Site of Jesus’ Ascension, Only Day They Can Use Chapel Currently Under Muslim Control

“I’m excited to have come to pray in the actual place of the Ascension... I want to be closer to...

Pope Francis arriving at the meeting with bishops, priests, deacons, consecrated persons, seminarians and catechists in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Dili, East Timor, Sept. 10, 2024. / Vatican Media

Catholics in East Timor Welcome Pope Francis to their Island "oasis" of Religious Vocations

Speaking in Dili's cathedral, Pope Francis challenged East Timor's Catholic leaders to renew evangelization efforts, declaring that the nation's position...