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COVID-19

Logo South Sudan Council of Churches (SSCC).

Church Leaders in South Sudan Call for “personal commitment” to Fight COVID 19

May 15, 2020

Leaders of the South Sudan Council of Churches (SSCC) comprising seven member Churches have appealed to the citizens to have a “personal commitment” to fight COVID-19 amid the lifting of the earlier passed restrictions to contain the spread of the disease in the Eastern Africa country.

Archbishop Alfred Adewale Martins of Nigeria's Lagos Archdiocese.

Nigerian Archbishop Allays Fears over Access to Hospitals Offered for COVID-19 Patients

May 15, 2020

The Archbishop of Lagos in Nigeria has sought to allay fears of people who are reluctant to access the Catholic run health facilities in the Archdiocese following the announcement that the government can use the health centers to give care to COVID-19 patients.

Bishops of the Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM). / Courtesy

Liturgical Celebrations “resume forthwith” in Malawi, Bishops Outline Safety Measures

May 15, 2020

Bishops in the southeastern Africa nation of Malawi have resolved to "resume forthwith" public liturgical celebrations and outlined safety measures to prevent the possible spread of COVID-19 during the meetings.

Sr. Jane Francis, a Comboni Sister serving at St. Therese Hospital Nzara, South Sudan.

Patients Avoiding Hospital in South Sudan for Fear of COVID-19, Nun at Facility Concerned

May 14, 2020

Fear of getting infected with COVID-19 has led to many patients resisting admission at a Catholic hospital in South Sudan, a majority of them with unrelated health complications opting for self-medication away from the health facility. This situation is giving a Catholic nun working in the eastern Africa country a headache.

Catholic Professionals in Ghana Warn of Mental Issues amid COVID-19 Stigma Surge

May 14, 2020

A pregnant woman, last week, recounted on Ghanaian local media her terrible ordeal with her friends who learnt that she had survived COVID-19.

Nurses and trainee health care-givers at Mary Ward Primary Health Care Clinic in Rumbek, South Sudan pose for a photo outside the Clinic on the eve of International Nurses Day. / Sr. Orla Treacy

In South Sudan, Nurses at Loreto Clinic Improvising Protective Gear in COVID-19 Fight

May 13, 2020

As the world marked the International Nurses Day on Tuesday, May 12, celebrating the fearlessness, hard work and selflessness of nurses who continue to put their lives on the line to save those who have been diagnosed with COVID-19, our attention at ACI Africa was drawn to a clinic in South Sudan where health caregivers are fighting all odds in times of the pandemic to attend to the sick.

Logo Episcopal Conference of Burkina Faso and Niger (CEBN) / CEBN

Ascension Feast to Mark Resumption of Public Mass in Burkina Faso, Niger

May 13, 2020

The resumption of the celebration of Holy Mass in public in the West African nations of Burkina Faso and Niger is expected on the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord, Thursday, May 21, the Bishops in the two-nation Conference announced over the weekend.

Religious Leaders at the Jubilee House during a Prayer Breakfast Meeting with the President of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo (right) on March 20, 2020. / Ghana’s Presidency

Church Leaders in Ghana Propose Public Worship Guidelines, Anticipate Restrictions Easing

May 13, 2020

In anticipation of the easing of COVID-19 restrictions in Ghana, which would see the resumption of public worship, heads of the Ecumenical bodies in the West African nation have proposed guidelines to ensure the safety of worshipers when the churches are allowed to open.

Several Islands in Uganda flooded after Lake Victoria overflowed its banks. The inhabitants had to be evacuated. / Swim Safe/Malteser International

Flooding in Uganda Threatening COVID-19 Response, Catholic Relief Agency Cautions

May 13, 2020

Following the heavy rains being experienced in the East African nation of Uganda, an official of Malteser International (MI), the worldwide relief agency of the Rome-based Catholic Lay Religious Order of Malta, has warned that the resulting floods are a threat to COVID-19 response in the affected region.

JRS teachers in Chad with some of the posters and information materials they are using to create awareness about COVID-19 among the refugee communities. / Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS)

Jesuit Refugee Service Teachers in Chad Engage Refugees on COVID-19 Safety Measures

May 13, 2020

As schools in Chad remain closed due to COVID-19-related restrictions, teachers working under the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS), the international refugee organization of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), are engaging refugees in the landlocked north-central African nation, conveying messages on safety measures to prevent the spread of the virus in the communities.

Bishop Frank Nubuasah, SVD  of Botswana's Gaborone diocese.

Reopening of Churches in Botswana “light at the end of the tunnel,” Bishop Says

May 12, 2020

Following the decision by the parliament of the landlocked Southern African nation of Botswana to begin a gradual lifting of the five-week COVID-19 lockdown, a Bishop in the two-diocese country has welcomed the move, terming it “light at the end of the turnel.”

Bishop Emmanuel Fianu, SVD of Ho Diocese in the Volta Region blessing the Oils at the Diocesan Chrism Mass on April 8, 2020 attended by only the Deans of the Diocese. / Diocesan Communications Office

Ghanaian Clergy Celebrate Postponed Chrism Mass with a Firm Call to Serve the Poor

May 12, 2020

A call to make the most vulnerable members of the society a priority especially during COVID-19 was the key message at the Chrism Mass celebration, which Ghana’s Archdiocese of Accra had postponed owing to the restrictions of the pandemic in the West African country.

Bishop Paul Kariuki Njiru, Chairman of the Commission for Education and Religious Education of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB)

“Children’s health, safety comes first”: Kenyan Bishop to Parents on Reopening Schools

May 12, 2020

The Bishop at the helm of Education at the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) has sought to calm parents who are anxious about the education of their children after weeks of indefinite school closure amid COVID-19 restrictions and urged them to prioritize the “health and safety” of their children.

Logo South African Council of Churches

Church Leaders in South Africa Urge Use of WhatsApp to Fight Gender-Based Violence

May 12, 2020

In South Africa where COVID-19 restrictions have plunged the country into various crimes including police brutalities and a rise in cases of gender-based violence (GBV), church leaders drawn from 30 Christian denominations have condemned the crimes and encouraged the use of WhatsApp to report cases of violence founded on gender.

Bishops of the Episcopal Conference of Benin (CEB).

“Redouble efforts in prayer in your families”: Bishops in Benin to Faithful

May 12, 2020

Bishops of the Episcopal Conference of Benin (CEB) have, in a statement, urged the faithful in the West African country to take advantage of the restrictions put in place to curb the possible spread of COVID-19 by praying at the level of their respective families even as they wait for the resumption of public worship.

Staff of the Jesuit Urumuri Centre (JUC) prepare food items for vulnerable families in Rukiri II cell, a village in Remera sector, Rwanda. / Jesuit Urumuri Centre (JUC).

Jesuits in Rwanda Donate Food Items to the Vulnerable, A Response to COVID-19 Challenges

May 11, 2020

As a response to the challenges posed by COVID-19 restrictions, the leadership of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) in Rwanda has reached out to vulnerable families in the East African nation, donating food items through the Jesuit Urumuri Centre (JUC).

A view of the Vatican's Sistine Chapel. Credit: Bohumil Petrik/CNA.

Vatican Museums to Reopen with Temperature Checks, Mandatory Face Masks

May 11, 2020

The Vatican Museums are preparing to reopen by reservation only with new health measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, according to the general secretary of Vatican City State.

Members of the Congregation of the Little Sisters of Saint Francis (LSOSF) in Kenya donating food items to slum dwellers at St. Mary's Mukuru Parish in the Archdiocese of Nairobi. / Fr. John Munjuri

Slum Parish Receives Aid from Kenya-based Order of Nuns, A Response to Bishops’ Appeal

May 11, 2020

Members of the Congregation of the Little Sisters of Saint Francis (LSOSF) in Kenya have reached out to needy families at a slum parish in the Archdiocese of Nairobi with food donations in response to the Catholic Bishops' appeal for assistance amid COVID-19 restrictions.

Patricia Adèle Félicité, Secretary General of Caritas Mauritius.

Caritas Mauritius Collaborating with Other Agencies to Support Families Amid COVID-19

May 9, 2020

To alleviate the suffering of people amid COVID-19 restrictions in Mauritius, Caritas Mauritius, the social arm of the Catholic Church in the island nation, is collaborating with various agencies to offer humanitarian relief.

Archbishop Valerian Okeke distributing relief materials to the less privileged in a ceremony at the Basilica of the Most Holy Trinity Onitsha, Nigeria. / Archdiocese of Onitsha

“Without people, there would be no Church”: Nigerian Prelate over Care for Less Privileged

May 9, 2020

The need to care for the people of God in society amid COVID-19 restrictions is significant for the very existence of church because these people, including the less privileged, constitute the church institution, a Nigerian Archbishop has said.