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Spring 2002
Newsletter Burkina Faso – a new Jubilee Fund project
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Footballers may know more than most people about Burkina Faso. There are a number of Burkinabé footballers playing in Europe and Burkina Faso came fourth in the African Nations’ Cup – unfortunately they were knocked out in the first round of this year’s competition. Burkina
Faso was a French colony, known as Upper Volta, until its independence in
1960. Its northern provinces lie in the belt of semi-arid land known as the
Sahel, suffering from cycles of drought and food shortages. Further south the
rainfall is heavier, supporting the small-scale farming that most people rely
on. However, these dry conditions are creeping southwards, threatening to
turn farmland into desert.
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Yet against this backdrop,
Burkina Faso’s people are striving to overcome their harsh climate and
political and economic challenges, to improve the quality of their lives.
ODE
has now built over 20 dams in Burkina Faso, making a huge difference to
people’s lives. Their new integrated approach around the most recent dams has
helped people improve the fertility of their soil though sustainable work such
as composting and tree planting. They also work with the government to
improve people’s access to water, education and health. ODE
is supported by churches and other organisations in the North and its mission
statement is ‘As a testimony of God’s love in action, ODE contributes to the
economic, social, cultural and spiritual development of Burkina Faso.’ The
Church in Wales is proud to have the opportunity to work with them through
the Jubilee Fund. |
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Jubilee Fund is two
years old! Thank you for your
fantastic support of the Jubilee Fund appeal over the past two years. Your
generosity has already raised over £110,000 - more than had been expected for
the first five years of the appeal! Your gifts mean that we are now able to
support three new projects through our appeal, the ‘Office de Développement
des Eglises Evangéliques’ (ODE) in Burkina Faso, the Diocese of Byumba in
Rwanda, and Solace Ministries, also in Rwanda. Over 250
parishes and church schools in Wales are supporting the Jubilee Fund, along
with many individuals. Many are giving to the Fund on a regular annual basis.
A number have organised specific events to raise money for the Fund. We are
grateful for the continued support, which will enable us to make donations to
other international development projects that perhaps would not otherwise be
able to continue if it were not for funding from the Church in Wales. |
Working with the Church
in Rwanda The
Jubilee Fund is supporting two projects in Rwanda, in partnership with Mid-Africa
Ministries, part of CMS. The
first is to help the Diocese of Byumba, in the north of Rwanda, provide
corrugated iron sheets for the roofing of houses being built by groups of
widows from the genocide. The widows make bricks from baked mud to build the
walls; but the roofing sheets cost £100 each and are too expensive for them
to buy. In
the south of Rwanda. Solace Ministries, set up by Rwandan Christians,
provides counselling and group therapy for widows raped during the genocide
period, many of whom contracted AIDS. They want also to provide assistance
for those who cannot pay medical fees; the Jubilee Fund has promised to help
meet these fees. Jean Gakwandi, the Director of Solace Ministries, wrote: “We
thank God for your burden towards this ministry and your willingness to help
as much as you can. I now know that with this grant from Wales, we will be
able to meet the health needs of the people we have been called to serve.” |
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The latest project to be supported by the
Church in Wales Jubilee Fund is the work of 
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Visit to Jubilee Fund Projects Daniel Burton, Rector of St. Bride’s Minor
with Bettws with Aberkenfig in the Diocese of Llandaff, was in Jerusalem in
February as part of a delegation from the Church Mission Society. He was able
to visit both Rawdat El Zuhur School, Jerusalem, and the Near East Council of
Churches (NECC) in Gaza, supported by the Church in Wales Jubilee Fund. He
writes:
We had the same impression the following day when Kevin Cecil (South Wales CMS secretary) and I visited Rawdat El Zuhur School in East Jerusalem. It was an ordinary school day and classes were proceeding as normal. Mrs Salwa Zananiri, the Principal, showed us around the school with her usual hospitality and humour. But under the surface things are far from well. There is a sense of desperation in the Palestinian community at the moment. Seventeen months of the Al Aqsa Intifada have brought no gains for the Palestinians, and daily life is getting harder and harder. The road blocks and the closure of Palestinian communities create tension, anger and frustration that touch everybody in different ways. Even the children’s art on the school walls reflects the violence that is a part of everyday life. The support given to the School by the Jubilee Fund is evidently very important and the staff were as ever very grateful for our continued solidarity with them in this time of suffering. We came away from Jerusalem afraid that there would be no Easter joy this year. For the Palestinian people it is one long Good Friday.” |
“We
were in Gaza on one of the days that the Israeli airforce decided to bomb
Gaza City. In fact we were in the chapel of the Al Ahli Anglican Hospital sharing
in the Eucharist when the bombing started on a PLO building just two blocks
away. It was very frightening for us, but all in a day’s routine for the
people of Gaza. We went from there to see the NECC and its general secretary
Constantine Dabbagh. We could not see the Mobile Dental Clinic supplied by
the Jubilee Fund because it is was out on its rounds – but we were assured
that it was being used to the full. Constantine spoke very movingly to our
group about the personal cost involved in staying in Gaza during the present
conflict. His has been no small sacrifice. What was very worrying was that
hope seemed to be in short supply.
A letter from Samia Khoury, President of Rawdat El-Zuhur
Dear Philip, Thank you again for
your generous contribution of £1000. Hope all is well with you and the Church
in Wales. We are looking forward
to our 50th anniversary celebrations in April. The children are excited
with all the preparations. Kevin Cecil and Dan
Burton were at the school this morning. They had been part of a CMS group
which was visiting. They were in the midst of the action when Gaza was being
shelled. Never a dull moment!! With warm greetings to everybody in the Church in
Wales. Samia |