Church in Zimbabwe far behind in communication
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A UMNS photo by Kathy L. Gilbert The Rev. Elijah Kabungaidze must climb this hill to get cell phone reception.
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The
Rev. Elijah Kabungaidze, superintendent of the Murange District in
Zimbabwe, has a phone in his house that doesn't ring and a cell phone
that can only be used if he climbs a high hill several kilometers away.
The Foundation for United Methodist Communications is working to raise
funds for establishing communication centers in each United Methodist
area outside the United States. The Mississippi Annual (regional)
Conference has pledged $14,000 to establish a center in Zimbabwe. A UMNS
photo by Kathy L. Gilbert. Photo #06654. Accompanies UMNS story #345.
6/12/06 |
June 12, 2006
By Kathy L. Gilbert*
HARARE, Zimbabwe (UMNS) — Gladman Makwenya is a young,
enthusiastic communicator, ready to take on the challenges of spreading
the news about the church in Zimbabwe with a pen and some loose recycled
newsprint pages.
Pen and paper are about the only tools he has right now; he is
not even assured he will always have a table to write on or a chair to
sit in.
Barbara Nissen and Tafadzwa Mudambanuki, members of United
Methodist Communications’ Communications Resourcing Team, met with
church leaders in Zimbabwe in 2005 to hear the stories of their
challenges.
The meeting was part of the Central Conference Communications
Initiative approved by the 2004 General Conference. The United Methodist
Church’s legislative assembly approved the initiative to develop
communications capabilities in the denomination’s regional units — or
conferences — in Africa, Europe and Asia.
Working in partnership with central conference church leaders,
United Methodist Communications is helping those areas not only meet
their own needs but also the needs of the larger church “for hearing,
embracing and sharing life-transforming stories,” said Nissen.
“The leaders of the church in Africa have told us their ministry
is hindered by the inability of church leaders and members to
communicate with each other in a timely and accessible way,” said the
Rev. Larry Hollon, top executive of the communications agency.
Covenant of mutual help
The Foundation for United Methodist Communications is working to
raise funding for establishing communication centers in each conference.
The Mississippi Annual (regional) Conference has pledged $14,000 to
establish a center in Zimbabwe.
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A UMNS photo by Kathy L. Gilbert Church communicator Gladman Makwenya participates in a consultation at Africa University.
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Church
communicator Gladman Makwenya of Zimbabwe participates in a
consultation that identified communication challenges faced by the
United Methodist Church's central conferences. Findings from the 2005
meeting were used to develop the two-week training course to be held
June 15-30 at Africa University. The training is part of the Central
Conference Communications Initiative, approved at the 2004 General
Conference, to develop communication capacity in the conferences outside
the United States. A UMNS photo by Kathy L. Gilbert. Photo #06655.
Accompanies UMNS story #345. 6/12/06 |
Teams of Mississippians have traveled to Zimbabwe, visiting
Africa University, Mutare, Victoria Falls and Harare. The teams have
explored ways to link human and material resources in offering care for
people impacted by the AIDS pandemic.
After Hurricane Katrina, Bishop Eben K. Nhiwatiwa, resident
bishop of Zimbabwe, directed that a gift from his salary be designated
for relief in Mississippi and wrote a letter to United Methodists in
that state expressing his grief that the church in Zimbabwe could not be
physically present on the Gulf Coast in this time of great challenge.
Nhiwatiwa will preach and teach at the 2006 Annual Conference
Session in Jackson, Miss. At the conference, the Chabadza Covenant will
be celebrated. “Chabadza” is a Shona word that describes a partnership
in which one observes another at work in a field and joins in the work.
The bishop will serve as honored theologian in residence in
Mississippi, engaging laity and clergy in study and dialogue. Teams of
youth and adults are preparing to visit Zimbabwe. The communications
initiative is a priority of the Chabadza Covenant.
“Nothing can supersede communications in spreading the gospel,”
Nhiwatiwa said. “Communication is the hallmark of doing ministry in all
its various facets.”
Struggling to survive
Zimbabwe is a country struggling with many economic problems,
including hyperinflation, which makes it very hard to budget and plan
well, the bishop said. Currently, $1 in U.S. currency equals Z$101,000.
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A UMNS photo by Kathy L. Gilbert Nyakatsapa primary school students deliver and pick up mail for their home villages.
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Nyakatsapa
primary school students in Zimbabwe deliver and pick up mail for their
home villages. "The leaders of the church in Africa have told us their
ministry is hindered by the inability of church leaders and members to
communicate with each other in a timely and accessible way," says the
Rev. Larry Hollon, top executive of United Methodist Communications. The
Central Conference Communications Initiative, approved at the 2004
General Conference, seeks to identify communication needs and to train
church communicators and provide them with needed equipment. A UMNS
photo by Kathy L. Gilbert. Photo #06656. Accompanies UMNS story #345.
6/12/06 |
Zimbabwe is also a country with 120,000 United Methodists in two
annual conferences and 12 districts. The United Methodist Church was
established in 1897 at Old Mutare Mission through the efforts of Bishop
Crane Joseph Hartzell and other pioneers including missionaries.
“On Sunday, everyone goes to church — it is the center of
communication,” said Betty Spiwe Katiyo, lay leader of the Zimbabwe West
annual conference and a member of the communications board.
However, the bishop’s office in Harare does not have even the
most basic communication needs, she added. Katiyo said some businesses
have modern equipment, but the church is far behind in having adequate
communication tools.
“There are only two phone lines, and the switchboard does not
have enough extensions for the conference staff,” she said. The office
also lacks computers and Internet service is almost always “down.”
“We need telephones, faxes and other vehicles as a means of
communication. When you see what we have, you will not think it is
normal because of what you are used to,” she told Nissen and
Mudambanuki.
Communication outside the urban areas of Harare and Mutare is much more difficult, the team learned.
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A UMNS photo by Kathy L. Gilbert Basic communication is hampered by lack of adequate equipment.
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Basic
communication in the central conferences is hampered by lack of
adequate equipment. "The leaders of the church in Africa have told us
their ministry is hindered by the inability of church leaders and
members to communicate with each other in a timely and accessible way,"
says the Rev. Larry Hollon, top executive of United Methodist
Communications. The Central Conference Communications Initiative,
approved at the 2004 General Conference, seeks to identify communication
needs and to train church communicators and provide them with needed
equipment. A UMNS photo by Kathy L. Gilbert. Photo #06657. Accompanies
UMNS story #345. 6/12/06 |
The Rev. Elijah Kabungaidze, superintendent of the Murange
District, has a phone in his house that doesn’t ring and a cell phone
that can only be used if he climbs a high hill several kilometers away.
Because of the severe fuel shortage in the country, he uses a
bicycle or walks when he needs to visit his 14 circuits and 65 churches.
“I used to be able to get fuel once a week, but now I am lucky to
get it once a month,” he said. He is working to get a computer in his
office, a small room behind his garage, but he has to wait for
electricity in his area. He has two old typewriters but often has
trouble getting paper.
When he wants to send a letter, he waits on the side of the road
for a bus to come by and gives the letter to a passenger, who promises
to get it to the person he is trying to reach.
Schoolchildren often become the means of communication, said the
Rev. Joseph Zinhanga, pastor for Nyakatsapa primary school. Mavhu
Chishakwe, teacher in charge, demonstrated how frustrating it is to try
to get through on the school’s party line.
“Most phone calls don’t go through,” she said. “We have to wait
for other conversations to end. The code for school’s calls is three
short rings and one long ring.”
Most of the 438 children enrolled in the primary school are
orphans. Zinhanga calls the children together and selects the “head boy”
to hand out mail to students to take to family, friends and neighbors.
Jack Chipfiko, head master of Nyakatsapa secondary school, sends
students to collect the mail about 5 kilometers away. Children take mail
home about 5 to 8 kilometers away.
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A UMNS photo by Kathy L. Gilbert The switchboard at the bishop's office in Harare has only two lines and too few extensions for the staff.
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The
switchboard at the bishop's office in Harare has only two lines and too
few extensions for the staff. The office also lacks computers and
Internet service is often down. "The leaders of the church in Africa
have told us their ministry is hindered by the inability of church
leaders and members to communicate with each other in a timely and
accessible way," says the Rev. Larry Hollon, top executive of United
Methodist Communications. The Central Conference Communications
Initiative, approved at the 2004 General Conference, seeks to identify
communication needs and to train church communicators and provide them
with needed equipment. A UMNS photo by Kathy L. Gilbert. Photo #06658.
Accompanies UMNS story #345. 6/12/06 |
“The roads are very bad and haven’t been attended to in the last
six or seven years,” he said. There is no phone line in his office, and
he mostly uses a cell phone. “But it’s hard to get a connection.”
Working on solutions
“One size will not fit all,” Nissen said. “Through the
initiative, we have begun to work with conference leaders in each
episcopal area to identify needs and approaches to building and
enhancing communication infrastructure in the church.”
“From what we're hearing in Africa, we hope to help equip each
area with the tools and training needed to run a viable communications
center or workstation,” Mudambanuki said. “At the same time, we're
looking at how community radio or ham radios could strengthen the
outreach of the church.”
A two-week course of study will be held at Africa University June
15-30. Classes will include basic computer, Internet and email
training, journalism, photography, videography, video editing,
newsletter design and a special session on writing about social issues
such as HIV/AIDS and malaria.
“It is exciting to hear about the possibilities of having
communication offices in all our Episcopal areas,” said Makwenya. “It is
my prayer that God will continue to open possibilities.”
*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.
News media contact: Kathy L. Gilbert, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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