Echoes from the Palaver
By Fr. Silas Kemboi, SJ
I was privileged to represent AOR’s safeguarding team in JCAM’s CPOs workshop that was held from September 27th to October 1st at Africama House, Nairobi. The workshop brought together more than 15 CPOs from the various provinces and the common houses of formation in the continent. The purpose of the meeting was to reflect on the status of safeguarding in our various apostolates on the continent and collectively explore ways forward.
The first day was spent on prayer, reflections, and group sharing. This reoriented the focus of the workshop, rendering an honest and deep reflection on the lived experiences. The second day was dedicated to the presentation of reports. Different provinces, regions, and common houses of formation presented their reports.
Listening to others, I also realized that as the province, we have made great progress and strides. But I was inspired and challenged by the work and progress made by some provinces. I am hoping to learn something from them.
On the last day, we had a moment to listen and engage with Fr. Guinney and Dr. Sandra. The two lead the team that has been tasked by Father General to Promote Consistent Culture of Protection (PCCP). I was pleased to learn that among the two schools chosen in the conference, one of our schools was selected for a piloting program. This is a privilege but also a huge task, for it puts our safeguarding work in the limelight. We look forward to working closely with school leadership to operationalize the program.
I am grateful to the province for giving me the opportunity to learn and interact with such a network of CPOs. It will take time to unpack the many lessons learned from the workshop. Read the next update for my take-home from the workshop.
