By Paschal Norbert
LILONGWE, JANUARY 31, 2025 (CISA) – The President of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), His Eminence Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, has called for a renewed approach to leadership within the Catholic Church in Africa. Speaking at the end of his visit to Malawi, the Cardinal emphasized the need for bishops to extend their engagement beyond local dioceses and address broader social challenges facing the continent.
During his visit from January 28 to 30, 2025, Cardinal Ambongo met with Malawian bishops on the sidelines of their first annual plenary meeting at the Catholic Secretariat in Lilongwe. The discussions focused on strengthening collaboration among African dioceses, fostering missionary work, and enhancing the Church’s role in social development.
In an interview with local Catholic journalists, Cardinal Ambongo, who also serves as the Metropolitan Archbishop of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), underscored the responsibility of African bishops to think beyond their national borders.
“The way we have to build the Catholic Church in Africa is new for me. If we are here in Malawi, the Bishop of Malawi has to take care not only of the church in Malawi, but of the church in Africa. We have this core responsibility for the church,” he stated.
A member of the Council of Cardinals, also known as the C9, which advises Pope Francis, Cardinal Ambongo highlighted the Vatican’s recognition of the Church’s remarkable growth in Africa. He noted that Africa is becoming a focal point of Catholicism, with an increasing number of faithful contributing to the Church’s global future.
“The church is growing in Africa. Now we can speak about…18% of the African population are Catholics and this is a great mark. So even the ecclesiastic studies, they confirm that in the globe of our church, it is in Africa that the Catholic Church is growing more. The future of the Church is in Africa,” he remarked.
The President of the Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM), Most Rev George Desmond Tambala, lauded the Cardinal’s visit, describing it as an inspiration for greater unity and collaboration across the continent. Archbishop Tambala noted that SECAM’s engagement would strengthen efforts in evangelization and social development following the recent Synod on Synodality.
“One of the things he has encouraged us to do is now explore the possibility of even visiting each other within Africa. It’s something that we have not done up to now, so that has been more in the scope,” said Archbishop Tambala.
He further elaborated on the key areas of collaboration discussed during the meeting.
“We have explored the different levels of collaboration in SECAM…, whether it is in the area of evangelization, area of planting the different missionary works in the region, area of formation of priests, area of social work of the church,” he added.
Cardinal Ambongo also commended the Catholic Church in Malawi for its dedication to both spiritual and social development. He acknowledged the Church’s significant contributions to education, healthcare, and community support, which benefit not only Catholics but the wider society as well.
